Combat drones deal - Russian officials visited Iran: US
The United States believes that Russian officials visited an airfield in Iran recently to view attack-capable drones, US national security advisor Jake Sullivan said yesterday.
The United States earlier this week said it has information that shows Iran is preparing to provide Russia with up to several hundred drones, including some that are weapons capable, and that Tehran is preparing to train Russian forces to use them.
"We assess an official Russian delegation recently received a showcase of Iranian attack-capable UAVs....To our knowledge, this is the first time a Russian delegation has visited this airfield for such a showcase," Sullivan said in a statement.
The statement included satellite imagery dated June 8 showing Iranian unmanned aerial vehicles (UAVs) "that the Russian government delegation saw that day". It said similar equipment was showcased for a second Russian visit to the airfield on July 5.
On Friday, Iran's Foreign Minister Hossein Amirabdollahian, in a phone call with his Ukrainian counterpart, rejected as baseless US accusations about Iranian drones being sent to Russia for use in the war against the Ukraine.
Iran, which has supplied UAVs to its allies in the Middle East, on Friday announced its first naval drone-carrying division in the Indian Ocean.
US President Joe Biden has used Iran's growing ties with Russia as a rallying cry to press Arab countries to take a harder stance on the Ukraine crisis. Gulf nations, which have energy and business ties with Moscow, have so far refused to take sides.
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