Jake Sullivan, the White House’s national security adviser, said intelligence received by the US supported views that the Russian military was facing challenges in maintaining its weapons after significant losses in Ukraine. “The Iranian government is preparing to provide Russia with up to several hundred UAVs (unmanned aerial vehicles), including weapons-capable UAVs, on an accelerated schedule,” Mr. Sullivan told reporters. “Our information further indicates that Iran is preparing to train Russian forces to use these UAVs, with initial training sessions scheduled to begin in early July,” he said. Mr. Sullivan said it was unclear whether Iran had yet delivered any of the drones to Russia. He also noted that Iran provided similar unmanned aerial vehicles to Yemen’s Houthi rebels to attack Saudi Arabia before a ceasefire was reached earlier this year. Mr Sullivan’s revelation comes on the eve of President Joe Biden’s trip to Israel and Saudi Arabia, where Iran’s nuclear program and malign activities in the region will be a key topic of discussion. The US decision to publicly reveal that the two countries’ main regional rival was helping Russia rearm comes as both Israel and Saudi Arabia resist global efforts to punish Russia for its invasion of Ukraine because of their domestic interests.
