Russia is providing Iran with real-time intelligence on the locations of American military assets, including warships and aircraft, to help Tehran target US forces across the Middle East, the Washington Post reported citing three officials familiar with the matter. The report marks a significant escalation in the geopolitical dimensions of the conflict, drawing in a nuclear-armed rival with advanced intelligence capabilities on Iran’s side less than a week after fighting began on February 28.
Read more:‘Our Response Is Clear’: Iran Tells Mediators To Focus On US And Israel, Not Tehran
What Russia Is Sharing And What Remains Unknown
The exact scope of Russia’s targeting assistance remains unclear, according to the Washington Post. Officials noted that Iran’s own independent capability to locate US forces has been degraded since the conflict began. However, the intelligence sharing may already be having consequences on the battlefield. Analysts cited in the report said Russian assistance could help explain Iran’s ability to strike specific US military infrastructure including command and control facilities, radar systems and temporary structures.
Among the targets hit was a CIA station at the US Embassy in Riyadh. An Iranian drone attack in Kuwait killed six American service members and wounded several others. Iran has launched thousands of one-way attack drones and hundreds of missiles at US military sites, embassies and civilian areas since the conflict began.
Read more:Same Iranian Drones, Different War: How Ukraine’s Battlefield Lessons Could Help US In West Asia
Moscow’s Words vs Moscow’s Actions
Russia’s reported intelligence sharing sits in sharp contradiction to its public posture on the conflict. Moscow- one of Tehran’s most powerful diplomatic partners- has labelled the US-Israeli campaign a clear violation of international law. Russia previously called the strikes that triggered the war an “unprovoked act of armed aggression" and President Vladimir Putin described the assassination of Supreme Leader Ali Khamenei as a “cynical violation of all norms of human morals."
Yet despite the sharp rhetoric, Moscow has not indicated any willingness to intervene militarily on Iran’s behalf- making the intelligence sharing, if confirmed, a form of involvement that stops short of direct combat engagement while still materially aiding Iran’s military campaign.
A Partnership Cemented In January
Source: World News in news18.com, World Latest News, World News
