As the war in Ukraine grinds on, some officials have become convinced that Iran and Russia are building a new alliance of convenience.
The Biden administration has launched a broad effort to halt Iran’s ability to produce and deliver drones to Russia for use in the war in Ukraine, an endeavor that has echoes of the years-long US program to cut off Tehran’s access to nuclear technology.
In interviews in the United States, Europe, and the Middle East, a range of intelligence, military, and national security officials have described an expanding US program that aims to choke off Iran’s ability to manufacture the drones, make it harder for the Russians to launch the unmanned “kamikaze” aircraft and — if all else fails — to provide the Ukrainians with the defenses necessary to shoot them out of the sky.
The breadth of the effort has become clearer in recent weeks. The administration has accelerated its moves to deprive Iran of the Western-made components needed to manufacture the drones being sold to Russia after it became apparent from examining the wreckage of intercepted drones that they are stuffed with made-in-America technology.
US forces are helping Ukraine’s military to target the sites where the drones are being prepared for launch — a difficult task because the Russians are moving the launch sites around, from soccer fields to parking lots. And the Americans are rushing in new technologies designed to give early warning of approaching drone swarms, to improve Ukraine’s chances of bringing them down, with everything from gunfire to missiles.
REFERENCE:
- https://www.nytimes.com/2022/12/28/us/politics/iran-drones-russia-ukraine.html
- https://focuswashington.com/2022/12/28/us-scrambles-to-stop-iran-from-providing-drones-for-russia/
- https://yourmiddleeast.com/2022/12/28/u-s-scrambles-to-stop-iran-from-providing-drones-for-russia/
- https://tellusdaily.com/2022/12/28/u-s-scrambles-to-stop-iran-from-providing-drones-for-russia/
- https://www.bostonglobe.com/2022/12/28/world/us-scrambles-stop-iran-providing-drones-russia/
By: Miss Cherry May Timbol – Independent Reporter
