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Russia Aids Iran With Satellite Intel and Drone Upgrades to Target US Forces
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Russia has expanded intelligence sharing and military cooperation with Iran, including the transfer of satellite imagery and upgraded drone technology, according to The Wall Street Journal on March 17.
The assistance is intended to help Tehran better target US forces and regional allies as Moscow works to sustain its closest Middle Eastern partner against US and Israeli military pressure.
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People familiar with the matter told the newspaper that the cooperation has deepened in the early phase of the war, with Russia recently providing satellite imagery directly to Iran.
“If there are details in those images that the Russians are providing, say, of specific types of aircraft, munitions sites, air defense assets, and naval movements, that have intel value to the Iranians, that would really help them,” Jim Lamson, a visiting research fellow at King’s College London and former CIA analyst focused on the Iranian military, told the newspaper.
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The support reportedly includes components for modified Shahed drones designed to improve communication, navigation, and targeting.
Russia has also shared battlefield lessons from its drone war against Ukraine, including guidance on strike altitudes and the number of drones to deploy in a single operation.
According to the report, Moscow’s intelligence has included the locations of US military forces in the Middle East and those of regional partners, and the assistance may have helped Iran strike radar systems in Jordan as well as targets in Bahrain, Kuwait, and Oman.
The report mentioned that Iran’s recent strike patterns in the Gulf increasingly resemble Russian tactics in Ukraine, particularly the use of drones to overwhelm radar before missile attacks.
Nicole Grajewski, a professor at Sciences Po in Paris, told the newspaper that Iranian targeting has become more focused on radar and command-and-control systems, adding that Iran’s strike packages now strongly resemble Russia’s methods.
The deepening cooperation reflects a broader military relationship that has grown since Russia launched its full-scale invasion of Ukraine.
Iran supplied Moscow with Shahed drones that Russia later adapted for more precise targeting and greater resistance to jamming, and Russia is now sharing some of those innovations back with Tehran.
The broader relationship also includes covert operations that go beyond direct military support.
A recent investigation by Systema found that Iranian intelligence operatives used Russian animation studios as commercial cover for arms trafficking and the export of grain stolen from occupied Ukrainian territories.
Leaked FSB documents and US government findings indicate that the network operated through companies behind the distribution of children’s content on major platforms, including Netflix and Apple TV.
The report identifies Sky Frame Studio head Sohrab Ghayrat as a central figure who, alongside animation work, allegedly helped procure Russian weapons for Yemen’s Houthi forces and organize grain shipments.
It also points to former studio chief Arash Doroudi as an intermediary tied to Iranian intelligence structures, with a parallel role in Russian aviation and technology circles.
Systema further reported that revenue from international licensing deals was routed through companies linked to Iran’s Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps, potentially helping finance proxy activity through civilian business channels.
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