Iran to supply Russia with ‘hundreds of drones’, top Biden official warns

Iranian army officials inspecting drones. The country’s government is expected to supply Russia with drones to use against Ukraine (Picture: AFP)

Iran is expected to arm Russia with ‘hundreds’ of drones to use against Ukraine, a White House official has warned.

President Joe Biden’s national security adviser said the US had information Tehran was preparing to boost Moscow’s arsenal with unmanned aerial vehicles (UAVs) on an ‘expedited timeline’.

‘The Iranian government is preparing to provide Russia with up to several hundred UAVs, including weapons-capable UAVs on an expedited timeline,’ Jake Sullivan told reporters.

‘Our information further indicates that Iran is preparing to train Russian forces to use these UAVs, with initial training sessions slated to begin as soon as early July.’

Mr Sullivan added that it was unclear whether the delivery had already taken place.

Iranian Foreign Ministry spokesperson Nasser Kanaani did not deny or confirm the claim in comments on Tuesday.

Drones on display prior to a military drill at an undisclosed location in central Iran (Picture: AFP)

A drone carrying a missile is launched during a military drill in Iran (Picture: AFP)

US national security adviser Jake Sullivan speaks to reporters during a press briefing at the White House (Picture: Reuters)

‘Iran’s co-operation with Russia in some sophisticated technologies dates to before the Russia-Ukraine war,’ he said.

‘There has not been any special development in this regard recently.’

Their comments come ahead of Vladimir Putin’s visit to the Middle-Eastern country next week.

According to the Kremlin’s spokesperson Dmitry Peskov, the Russian president will hold talks with his Turkish counterpart, Recep Tayyip Erdoğan, who has positioned himself as the main mediator between Russia and Ukraine.

But Mr Peskov told reporters there was no discussion about a new round of peace negotiations.

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In Tehran, Mohammadrez Pourebrahimi, the head of the Iranian parliament’s economic committee, told state-run news agency IRNA that Putin’s trip would seek to improve economic relations between the two sanctions-hit nations.

Drones have played a crucial role in the Russian invasion and such a delivery from Iran would only strengthen its forces.

So far, Russia has lost an estimated of 676 UAVs, according to data from the Armed Forces of Ukraine.

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