Ukraine war: tensions between western powers and Iran rise amid drone allegations

US and EU now support Ukraine's assertion that hundreds of Iran-made drones are being used by Russia

Drones are prepared for launch during a drill in Iran. AP

An escalating row between western powers and a growing Russia-Iran alliance continued on Thursday as US State Department spokesman Ned Price expressed “grave concerns” over the growing co-operation between the two countries.

The EU and the US now say there is sufficient evidence that Iran has supplied a large number of “kamikaze drones” for Russian forces — explosive unmanned aircraft which fly under radar coverage to dive bomb targets.

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  A drone is launched during a military drill in Iran. AP

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  Taking off from a warship. AP

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  An explosion after a strike by a military drone during drills at an undisclosed location in Iran. AFP

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  Iran is carrying out large-scale drone drills across the country, to show off the country's military strength, reports say. AFP

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  Troops on a submarine take part in the exercise. AFP

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  At least 150 drones are to be used in the drills, Iranian state media reports. Reuters

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  It is the first time that a joint drone exercise has been conducted at the level of the four forces of the Islamic Republic's army, authorities say. AFP

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  Iran's Army Commander-in-Chief Maj Gen Abdolrahim Mousavi looks on during the military exercises. Reuters

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  Iran started developing drones in the 1980s during its eight-year war with Iraq. AP

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  Its army unveiled its first division of ships and submarines capable of carrying armed drones in July. AFP

The “loitering munitions” have been used to attack civilian infrastructure as well as military targets in Ukraine and are similar to weapons supplied by Iran to Houthi militias, used to attack Saudi Arabia and the UAE.

Mr Price's remarks follow comments by State Department official Derek Chollet to The National on Wednesday calling the Iran-Russia collaboration “dangerous” and “unacceptable.”

Russia has strenuously denied using Iranian weapons, three months after the US said it had intelligence that Iran was preparing to transfer “hundreds” of drones to Russia.

Russia is one of the world’s largest arms manufacturers and exporters, but the high intensity of the conflict in Ukraine means it is struggling to find components for precision-guided missiles and drones, including microchips used in guidance systems and sensors, amid international sanctions.

The US, Britain and France raised the issue of Iran's alleged transfer of drones to Russia at a meeting of the UN Security Council on Wednesday, Mr Price said.

“We expressed our grave concerns about Russia’s acquisition of these UAVs from Iran,” Mr Price said.

Mr Price supported a recent European finding that there was sufficient evidence of the drone transfers and that action would be taken, namely a fresh round of sanctions.

“We now have abundant evidence that these UAVs are being used to strike Ukrainian civilians and critical civilian infrastructure,” he said.

“We will not hesitate to use our sanctions and other appropriate tools on all involved in these transfers,” Mr Price said.

"Although Iran continues to lie, the world is aware that Russia uses Iranian drones to attack Ukrainian civilians and infrastructure," he tweeted on Thursday.

Ukraine, which has moved to cut diplomatic relations with Tehran, says its military has shot down more than 220 Iranian drones in little more than a month and pictures have surfaced that show an Iranian link.

But Russian diplomat Dmitry Polyanskiy denounced the “baseless accusations and conspiracy theories”, citing as evidence that the Russian word for geraniums was written on the drones. Iran calls the most commonly supplied drone the Shahed-136.

Investigators would have little trouble tracing Iranian origins of the “kamikaze drones”, however. Russia’s “Geraniums” are identical to the Shahed-136 and in early 2020, a UN investigation was able to support US and Saudi Arabian assertions that drones used to attack Saudi Arabian oil infrastructure were Iranian-made.

“The UAVs used by the Russian army in Ukraine are manufactured in Russia,” Mr Polyanskiy told reporters outside the Security Council. “I would recommend that you do not underestimate the technological capabilities of the Russian drone industry.”

But he warned against any UN probe on the ground in Ukraine as part of enforcement of the existing sanctions on Iran.

“The team doesn't have this mandate to conduct investigations; it is not part of the sanctions committee. So this would be absolutely unprofessional and political,” he said.