NATO on Ukraine: Iran supplies missiles and combat drones to Russia — Ardestani

Iran supplies Russia with missiles and combat drones. This was stated by Ahmad Bakhshayesh Ardestani, a member of the parliamentary Committee on National Security, in an interview with Didban Iran on Saturday.

"We have to engage in barter to meet our needs, including the import of soybeans and wheat. Part of the barter includes sending missiles, and the other part includes sending military drones to Russia," Ardestani said, quoted by the Strana newspaper.

According to him, this will not lead to increased sanctions against Iran, because "it cannot be worse than it is now, we are giving missiles to Hezbollah, Hamas and Hashd al-Shaabi, so why not give them to Russia."

"We sell weapons and get dollars. We are circumventing sanctions thanks to our partnership with Russia. We import soybeans, corn and other products from Russia. Europeans sell weapons to Ukraine. NATO entered the Ukraine, so why don't we support our ally by sending missiles and drones to Russia," Ardestani said.

As reported by EADaily, Iran has sent to Russia more than 200 Fath-300 ballistic missiles capable of reaching targets at a distance of up to 112 kilometers. This was reported by The Times with reference to a source.

According to the source, the cargo was delivered on Wednesday by ship across the Caspian Sea. According to him, Iranian instructors will train the Russian military in missile control at the test site near Ashaluk in Astrakhan region.

Recall Iran's position on the conflict on Ukraine remains unchanged, Tehran refrains from providing military assistance to either side, the country's permanent mission to the UN said, CNN reported.

So, the diplomatic mission commented on the information of the channel's sources that the Iranian side recently handed over short-range ballistic missiles to Russia for use in combat operations on Ukraine.