Russia attacking Ukraine with weaponry smuggled in by Iran

According to members of Iranian-backed Iraqi militias and regional security agencies with knowledge of the operation, Russia is getting munitions and military gear from Iraq for its war effort in Ukraine via Iranian arms smuggling networks.

Following the collapse of Moscow’s campaign last month, the Guardian has learnt that RPGs and anti-tank missiles, together with Brazilian-designed rocket launcher systems, were sent to Russia from Iraq.

According to a source involved in the transit, the Iranian government also returned an S-300 and a Bavar 373 missile system, which are both identical to the Russian S-300.

As a result of fresh sanctions imposed as a result of the invasion of Ukraine, Moscow is now compelled to rely on Iran, its military partner in Syria, and this might signify a significant change in Russian policy.

Furthermore, these trends have a significant impact on the direction and scale of international arms trafficking.

A variety of Iraqi army and special forces groups have been trained and equipped by the United States to protect the Baghdad government against insurgencies since Saddam Hussein was toppled in 2003. The nation is saturated with weapons after two decades of conflict.

Even though they’re hostile to the US presence in Iraq and have been included into the Iraqi military since 2016, Iran-backed Shia militias are still in control of many of the country’s resources.

Their effectiveness in demolishing ISIS’ “caliphate” and their ruthless treatment of Sunni civilians have made them strong characters in Iraq’S security institutions.

The most powerful Shia militia umbrella, the Hashd al-Shaabi, has a large stockpile of RPGs and anti-tank missiles, and they were transported to Iran through the Salamja border crossing on March 26th, according to a commander of the militia branch that controls the crossing. They were then taken to Russia by sea.

Two Brazilian-designed Astros II rocket launcher systems, known in Iraq as Sajil-60, were disassembled and shipped to Iran on April 1, according to a source inside ashd al-Shaabi, the Iraqi military.

One Hashd al-Shaabi insider remarked, “We don’t care where the heavier weapons go [since we don’t need them at the present].” In other words, “We like it when people are anti-US.”

Two Russian-flagged cargo ships and one Iranian-flagged cargo ship sailed the Caspian Sea from Bandar Anzali, Iran, to Astrakhan, Russia, in the times specified.

As of right moment, the Russians in Ukraine require missiles. According to an Istanbul-based marine affairs specialist who spoke to the BBC, “It’s conceivable to move them since they are weak and explosive,” Yörük Işk stated. They can be carried in enormous boxes and conventional shipping container, so it’s not something that satellite imaging would pick up on.

“That type of advanced armament [rocket launcher systems] would make a major impact on the ground in Ukraine,” said Carnegie Middle East Center fellow Mohaned Hage Ali. Much of the Iranian border territory is controlled by the Ashd al-Shaabi terrorist group, making a deal between the two countries simpler.

This new sanctions scenario has made other nations like China extremely cautious about supplying Russia with arms.” That axis includes Iran, which wants to keep Russia from losing territory in this battle.

This might have a tremendous impact on Iran’s dictatorship in Syria, where it relies on Russian air assistance and collaborates with Russia to avoid direct combat with Israel.

Western countries have imposed a wide range of economic penalties on Russia since the February 24 invasion, including prohibitions on dual-use commodities, such as vehicle spare parts and some kinds of electrical and optical technologies, as well as items with apparent military use.

As a result of the new limitations, Ukraine claims that Russia’s primary armoured vehicle facility and a tractor factory have ran out of components for constructing and repairing tanks.

29 of Russia’s initial battalion tactical groupings are now “combat non-effective” from an estimated 125-battalion invading force in the six-week-old “special military operation,” according to revised western assessments.

Russian troops seem to have abandoned their original plan to retake the Ukrainian capital of Kyiv and are instead shifting their ground forces in the Donbas area, which is in the south-east of the nation.

Kharkiv, Mykolaiv, and the beleaguered port of Mariupol are all anticipated to see further airstrikes and artillery attacks.

The Ukrainian intelligence agencies have accused Georgia of aiding Russia in obtaining sanctioned military supplies, which might be an indication of the Kremlin’s increased attempts to employ international smuggling networks to boost its fight in Ukraine.

An official with the Kyiv-based Intelligence Directorate claimed that Georgia’s political leadership had instructed the country’s special services not to interfere with smuggling conduits from “east Asia” that were intended to avoid new Western sanctions.

Officials from Georgia indicated that Ukraine’s accusations were without merit. Tbilisi’s unwillingness to impose economic penalties on Moscow has led to a dramatic deterioration in relations between the two post-Soviet republics.

According to US authorities, Russia has requested China for military-grade weaponry and equipment in support of its Ukraine mission.

In response to Western fears about an armaments buildup in the Balkans at the same time as the conflict in Ukraine that may undermine the fragile peace in the area, Russia’s ally Serbia received receipt of a Chinese anti-aircraft system secretly over the weekend, according to AP.

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