Russia shipping drones, explosives to rebuild Irans supply: report

Russia is shipping parts for drones, missiles and explosives to Iran to replenish its weapons stockpiles decimated by US and Israeli airstrikes during the war, according to a new report.More than two dozen Russian ships, many of them under US and European sanctions, traveled across the Caspian Sea to deliver the arms to Iran’s port in Amirabad, NBC News reported, citing documents and a Western official.

While the development demonstrates Moscow and Tehran’s deepening alliance, it also proves that the US-Israeli strikes against Iran’s production plants have been largely successful, Jim Lamson, a former CIA analyst, told the outlet.“Iran’s procurement of drone components and small arms ammunition from Russia strongly suggests that Israeli and US military strikes on Iran’s facilities that produce these items have degraded Iran’s domestic capability to produce them,” he said.

The Russian ships currently transporting military cargo are allegedly owned by MG-FLOT, a maritime company that was hit by Western sanctions in 2024.Russia has been repeatedly accused of aiding Iran’s war effort and sending upgraded drones to the Islamic republic to bolster Tehran’s ability to hit US targets.

The Kremlin has notably improved on Iran’s war-defining Shahed suicide drones, which have plagued Ukraine for years.The exchange has raised alarms that Moscow is playing an active role to empower Iran’s war machine just as Tehran did for them following the 2022 invasion of Ukraine.

It remains unclear how many supplies Russia has gifted Iran, with the Kremlin repeatedly slamming the allegations as nothing more than “fake news.” President Trump has downplayed Russia’s aid to Iran, claiming last month that Russian dictator Vladimir Putin assured him that Moscow was not selling arms to Tehran.He also said any form of Russian aid “has been very unimpactful” after Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky accused the Kremlin of sharing satellite images of US bases...