Mohammad Hossein Baqeri dismissed as “part of the enemy’s psychological warfare” claims Russia is using Iranian UAVs in Ukraine
The launch of a military unmanned aerial vehicle during a two-day drone drill at an undisclosed location in Iran © AFP / AFP PHOTO/HO/IRANIAN ARMY OFFICE
By making allegations that Russia is using Iranian-made military drones in the ongoing conflict with Ukraine, the West has basically acknowledged the effectiveness of Iranian technology, Major General Mohammad Hossein Baqeri argues. The military official insists, however, that the claims are spurious, describing them as “part of the enemy’s psychological warfare.”
In an article on Sunday, Iran’s state-run Tasnim news outlet quoted the Chief of Staff of the Iranian Armed Forces as saying that the West is very much aware of just how advanced Tehran’s UAVs are, as evidenced by incessant claims that Iranian drones are being used in the ongoing Ukraine conflict.
Baqeri went on to proclaim that Iran is among the top five military drone manufacturers worldwide.
According to the general, a former commander of the United States Central Command (CENTCOM) has recently acknowledged that Washington has lost complete air superiority for the first time since WWII, not least because of Iranian drones.
“It is true that they have lost such aerial superiority,” the Iranian general confirmed, adding that “this is a big and humiliating confession by the Americans.”
On Thursday, Iranian Foreign Ministry spokesman Nasser Kanaani insisted that the “Islamic Republic of Iran has not exported any military equipment to any party for use in the Ukraine war.” The diplomat also warned Ukrainian President Vladimir Zelensky that Tehran’s “strategic patience will not be unlimited towards unfounded accusations.”
The statement came in response to Zelensky’s speech before US lawmakers on Wednesday, in which he accused Iran of providing Russia with kamikaze drones.
Earlier this month, Iranian defense minister, Brigadier General Mohammad Reza Ashtiani claimed that the “Ukrainian side did not present any evidence of Russia’s use of Iranian drones in the war” during a meeting between Ukrainian and Iranian specialists.
Ukraine and the US have repeatedly accused Iran of supplying Russia with military drones, claiming that Moscow’s Geran-2 drones are actually the Iranian-made Shahed-136 UAVs.
In early October, Russia mounted a campaign of massive strikes on Ukraine’s power grid and critical infrastructure, which heavily relies on missiles and kamikaze drones.
Iranian Foreign Minister Hossein Amir-Abdollahian acknowledged in November that Tehran had shipped a “small number of drones” to Moscow “months before” the current conflict in Ukraine broke out.
The Kremlin, in turn, consistently denies that the Russian military is using Iranian drones, insisting that all weapons deployed in Ukraine come from domestic stockpiles.
