Iran will reportedly increase its military support to the Russian military by supplying ballistic missiles to aid its war effort in Ukraine, which an expert told Newsweek could overwhelm Ukraine’s air defenses.
With Iranian-made Shahed-136 or “Kamikaze” drones already swarming across Ukrainian skies and hitting civilian targets, Kyiv has expressed concern at the prospect of Tehran handing surface-to-surface ballistic missiles to Russian forces along with others unmanned aerial vehicles (UAVs). .
This undated photo shows Iran’s surface-to-surface Fateh-110 missile being tested. Tehran will reportedly supply Russia with ballistic missiles for use in the Ukraine war. Getty Images
CNN reported Tuesday that Iran is expected to send about 1,000 additional weapons by the end of the year. This shipment will include drones and, for the first time since the beginning of the war, advanced precision guided missiles.
In an appeal to Western allies for military aid, Ukraine’s Air Force spokesman Yuriy Ihnat said his country had “no effective defenses against these missiles,” adding “we have air defenses, but no missile defenses.”
What kind of missiles could Iran send?
Unnamed officials from a US-allied country that oversees Iran’s arms activities told the Washington Post that Iranian officials had been sent to Moscow and finalized the arms-supply deal on Sept. 18.
Both the Post and Portal reported last month that Tehran would supply Moscow with the Fateh-110 and Zolfaghar missiles, among others.
Russia was hit hard by Ukrainian attacks from the US-supplied M142 HIMARS (M142 High Mobility Artillery Rocket System). The HIMARS’ ability to fire weapons and move quickly has made them very effective, but their missile range is around 50 miles, much less than Iran’s missiles.
The Fateh-110 has a range of around 200 miles, can travel at up to 3,800 miles per hour, and can hit targets with an accuracy of around 16 to 32 feet, according to Military Today.
The Zolfaghar missile, a variant of the Fateh-110 family, has similar accuracy and carries a cluster munition warhead, but has a longer range of up to 700 km, according to the Missile Defense Advocacy.
How could this change Russia’s election campaign?
The US has pledged to send eight National Advanced Surface-to-Air Missile Systems (NASAMS) to Ukraine, two of which will soon be deployed in the country. However, Iran-supplied missiles would give Russia a significant boost in its invasion of Ukraine.
Marina Miron, a research associate in the Department of Defense Studies at King’s College London (KCL), said that the advantages of the Fateh-110 “apart from being comparatively cheap, is the ability to be stealthy and launch from anywhere “.
“So if mobility is reduced in the winter, Russia will have more opportunities to launch Iranian missiles without being detected and potentially hit by HIMARs,” she told Newsweek.
“That would give Russia some sort of parity and an opportunity to replenish its inventories, use the cheaper Iranian missiles to overwhelm Ukraine’s air defense systems and ensure they can attack most military targets and critical civilian infrastructure.”
Why is Iran helping Russia?
Though it has denied supplying Russia with drones, Iran has emerged as Russia’s most reliable war partner and can win economically and militarily by supplying Moscow with ballistic missiles.
“Iran can get its missiles combat tested and that is very important,” Miron said. “It wants its missiles tested in real conditions because Iran is very concerned about neighboring Iraq and Israel is obviously another target.
“Israel has great air defenses, so they want to make sure their missiles can penetrate the Iron Dome,” she added.
With Iran under Western sanctions, supplying missiles to Russia can be a source of revenue. Meanwhile, Tehran is expected to sign a roughly $40 billion energy deal with Russian gas giant Gazprom in December, further cementing ties.
“Geopolitically, this is a big deal for Iran,” Miron added.