The administration of the President of the United States of America made a statement, that if Iran provides ballistic missiles to Russia, the response of Washington and the West will be “swift and severe”.
White House National Security spokesperson John Kirby informed that currently Washington is seeking confirmation of the missile supplies from Iran to Russia.
“For our part, we will take this matter to the U.N. Security Council,” Kirby emphasized. “We will implement additional sanctions against Iran. And we will coordinate further response options with our allies and partners in Europe and elsewhere.”
According to Reuters and its three Iranian sources, there is information about the intended provision of 400 missiles, a large portion is from Fateh-110 family short-range ballistic missiles, such as Zolfaghar. These missiles are mounted on wheeled vehicles, while the Zolfaghar missiles are capable of striking targets at a distance of between 300 km and 700 km.
The first shipments took place in early January 2024 following the meeting between Tehran and Moscow military and security officials, according to Reuters source from Iran.
Shahed kamikaze drones, manufactured in Iran and provided to Moscow, have significantly contributed to Russia’s attacks on Ukrainian civilian and critical infrastructure. However, the provision of ballistic missiles would symbolize a next level of collaboration between the two rogue-states.
“In response to Iran’s ongoing support for Russia’s brutal war, we will be imposing additional sanctions on Iran in the coming days, and we are prepared to go further if Iran sells ballistic missiles to Russia,” Kirby said.
