News reports confirmed this weekend that the Islamic Republic of Iran and Russia further sealed their military cooperation this November by agreeing on the production Iranian attack drones on Russian soil, reinforcing the notion that the two partners have entered a close alliance against not only Ukraine but Western interests in the region.
The Washington Post first broke the news, noting that the information was based on new intelligence seen by American and other Western security agencies.
Citing three unnamed officials familiar with the matter, the newspaper stressed that Iran and Russia had rapidly begun to transfer designs and key components to begin production of such drones within months. “It is proceeding quickly from decision-making to implementation. It is moving fast and it has a lot of steam,” one official told the Washington Post.
While such development is unlikely to change dynamics on the ground – at least as far as the balance of military powers is concerned in Ukraine, the birth of such the Russian-Iranian Axis should give us pause politically as it confirms an ideological alignment we have been until now unwilling to admit to, never mind make provision against.
For the Kremlin and Tehran to work so closely together at such a juncture essentially means that the aggression of one party will most certainly come with the full support of the other – putting the recent challenge to Britain’s sovereignty and national security under a new light. Only a week ago the Islamic Republic proscribed Iran International, a UK-based media organisation, a terror organisation, ordering the murder of several of its journalists to avenge their criticism of Ali Khamenei.
If we consider that Iran’s media and outposts continue to operate freely in the UK, without any real rebuttal from government officials it stands to reason to assume that Russia will exploit such networks to not only bypass sanctions but exert influence by proxy.
More pressing still is Iran’s regime nuclear pursuit and the role Russia could play in advancing such ambitions.
Earlier this month, CNN reported that Iran had requested assistance from the Kremlin for its nuclear program if it fails to restore the deal.