The White House does not see any signs that Iran has transferred attack drones to Russia.
This was stated by the US National Security Council Communications Coordinator, John Kirby.
"We have no indication that the sale was done." a White House official stated when they were asked to comment on Iranʼs previous statement that Iran was ready to sell hundreds of combat drones to Russia.
At the same time, according to White House, this does not mean that the Russian Federation has abandoned its intentions to obtain drones from Iran.
He noted that Putinʼs trip to Iran showed how isolated Russia became after the invasion of Ukraine. It was Putinʼs first foreign visit since the beginning of the war.
- On July 11, the United States reported that Iran would soon provide Russia with "up to several hundred UAVs" and train the Russian military to use them. Russia wants to get UAVs for the war against Ukraine against the background of significant losses of its drones.
- After that, Iran stated that it has not sold military equipment to Russia since the beginning of the full-scale invasion of the territory of Ukraine and opposes further escalation of hostilities.
- On July 16, CNN reported that a Russian delegation visited Iran twice to inspect the Shahid-191 and Shahid-129 attack drones, which are capable of carrying missiles. CNN published a satellite image taken on the day of the Russiansʼ visit.
- State Department spokesman Ned Price said on July 18 that the United States will impose sanctions on Iran if it transfers attack drones to the Russian Federation.