Iran and Russia have gotten closer since the latter invaded Ukraine roughly eight months ago, according to the White House.
National Security Council coordinator John Kirby told reporters on Wednesday that it’d be “hard to argue” their relationship hadn’t grown stronger, as the two international pariahs have found themselves with a number of allies going as far as to call for de-escalation in Russia’s aggression in Ukraine.
Last week, Kirby confirmed reports that Iranian military personnel associated with Iran’s Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps had traveled to Crimea to train and assist Russian forces on the use of Iranian drones that they had purchased for use in Ukraine.
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“The fact is this: Iran is now directly engaged on the ground and through the provision of weapons that are impacting civilians and civilian infrastructure in Ukraine — in fact, that are killing civilians and destroying civilian infrastructure in Ukraine,” Kirby said last week, adding that the Russians decided to bring in Iranian trainers and technical support to help after “operator and system failures early on.”
“The evidence that Iran is helping Russia wage its war against Ukraine is clear,” White House spokeswoman Karine Jean-Pierre said during the same briefing. “And it is public. And Iran and Russia are growing closer the more isolated they become. Our message to Iran is very, very clear. Stop killing your people and stop sending weapons to Russia to kill Ukrainians.”
The Russian military has used Iranian Shaheed-136 “kamikaze” drones during a significant missile and drone bombardment over the course of roughly two weeks earlier this month. Cities all over Ukraine were under assault from these strikes, many of which had largely been spared from the front lines of the war.
Over the last month or so, the Iranian regime is currently experiencing some of the biggest protests since the 1979 revolution following the death of 22-year-old Mahsa Amini, who was killed days after being arrested by the Iranian morality police for improperly wearing her hijab.
Russia “may be considering” helping Iran squash the protests, Jean-Pierre and Kirby noted during the briefing, with the latter declining to provide details when pressed by reporters.
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“We see signs that they may be considering the ability to help train Iranians on cracking down on protesters,” Kirby explained. “I want to go too much into more detail. I would just say we’ve seen signs that they may be considering lending that kind of support to Iran.”
The State and Treasury departments announced new sanctions against Iranian entities and officials on Wednesday as well, including three commanders in the IRGC “for their brutal responses to protests in Iran,” according to Secretary of State Antony Blinken’s announcement.
“We remain committed to ensuring that those responsible for the brutal crackdown on those courageous protesters are held accountable,” Jean-Pierre added.
