The drone pipeline reverses: Russia now gives intel for Iranian strikes against American troops – Washington Post

Russia is providing Iran with intelligence used to target US military assets in the Middle East, according to US officials cited by The Washington Post.

The development highlights how Russia’s wartime partnership with Iran - built during Moscow’s full-scale invasion of Ukraine - is expanding beyond that battlefield.

Three officials familiar with the intelligence told The Washington Post that Moscow has shared information on the locations of US warships and aircraft since fighting between Washington and Tehran escalated last weekend. The data may have helped guide Iranian drone and missile strikes against American positions across the region.

Since 2022, Iran has become one of Russia’s key military partners. Tehran supplied the technology used to produce large numbers of one-way attack drones that Russian forces have repeatedly launched against Ukrainian cities and energy infrastructure.

Now US officials say the cooperation may be working in the opposite direction as well.

Iran strikes US targets with Russian-grade precision

Iran has fired hundreds of missiles and thousands of attack drones at US military sites, embassies, and other targets since the current conflict began, officials said. 

Analysts say the precision of some Iranian strikes suggests access to more advanced targeting data than Iran can typically generate on its own.

Iran operates only a limited number of military satellites and lacks a full satellite network, according to The Washington Post. Russia’s surveillance capabilities, including satellite imagery and other intelligence sources, could help Tehran identify command centers, radar systems, and other military infrastructure.

How the war against Ukraine sharpened Russia's targeting playbook

Experts say Moscow has refined many of these targeting methods during the war against Ukraine, where drones, satellite imagery, and electronic intelligence are widely used to locate Ukrainian positions.

The partnership between Moscow and Tehran has deepened throughout the war. Iranian drone technology has allowed Russia to produce large numbers of inexpensive attack drones used in repeated strikes designed to overwhelm Ukrainian air defenses.

At the same time, Ukraine has gained years of experience countering these systems.

Zelenskyy: US asked Ukraine for drone defense help

Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy said this week that the United States asked Kyiv for assistance defending against Iranian drones. He said Ukraine would send specialists with experience gained defending against the same systems used by Russian forces.

Officials cited by The Washington Post said Moscow may also see strategic advantages in a prolonged confrontation between the United States and Iran, including the possibility that it diverts Western attention and resources away from the war in Ukraine.