russia received hundreds of thousands of munitions from Iran – Sky News
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Iran secretly provided russia with many bullets, rockets, and mortar shells for the war against Ukraine.
Sky News reports, citing a security source, that two russian-flagged cargo ships left an Iranian port in January, heading to russia via the Caspian Sea.
They transported:
- approximately 100 million bullets,
- about 300,000 shells.
It is reported that the ships also had ammunition for MLRS, mortars, and machine guns. russia paid for the ammunition in cash.
- Secret cargo ships
The publication's source also reported that the two cargo ships, which probably took part in transporting ammunition from Iran to russia, are named Musa Jalil and Begey. Both sail under the russian flag.
One of the ships reportedly left Iran on or about January 10, and the other on or about January 12. According to the source, both vessels are believed to carry about 200 shipping containers filled with weapons.
Investigations by Sky News' data and forensics department confirmed the general claim of the ships moving, although the dates varied slightly. Journalists were unable to check what precisely the ships were transporting independently.
The marine tracker MarineTraffic recorded two ships in the Iranian port of Amirabad in the Caspian Sea on January 9. Satellite images obtained the next day showed at least one of the vessels still in port.
According to marine tracking data, the Musa Jalil left the port around 10:00 a.m. local time on January 10 and the Begey on the same day. On January 12, both ships stopped off the coast of Turkmenistan for several days. The reason for this is unknown. The ships then crossed the Caspian Sea and arrived in the russian port of Astrakhan on January 27. According to tracking data, they remained in port for several days before leaving on February 3.
The source in the security service did not confirm the name of the port in Iran from which the two ships left, nor the russian port where they arrived. However, it confirmed that the ships were heading to russia via the Caspian Sea.
"Iran sent two cargo ships to the combat zone in Ukraine, carrying approximately 200 new shipping containers that contained ammunition for the russian fighting in Ukraine," the source said.
- What the ships carried
The source said the shipment could contain approximately 100 million bullets of various sizes — 5.56 mm, 7.62 mm, 9 mm, 12.7 mm, and 14.5 mm — for use in weapons such as pistols, assault rifles, and machine guns.
According to the source, the ships were also carrying several other munitions, including approximately 300,000 shells, such as 40 mm grenades for grenade launchers, 107 mm anti-tank rocket and mortar shells of various sizes — 60 mm, 81 mm, and 120 mm — as well as artillery rockets (130 mm, 122 mm, and 152 mm) and armor-piercing shells (115 mm and 125 mm).
The source reported about 10,000 body armor and helmets on board.
"russia pays for the ammunition in cash and, by doing so, bypasses the western sanctions on it, ignoring the sanctions on Iran," the source added.
- Ambassador's comment
Ukraine's ambassador to Great Britain, Vadym Prystaiko, said he was not surprised that Iran could supply ammunition to russia. He expects such support to be more significant but urges Iran to stop being on the "wrong side of history."
Prystaiko told Sky News that russia could seek help from a so-called "coalition of weak states" such as Iran and North Korea, underscoring the difficulties it faces on the battlefield by using up its stockpile of ammunition against Ukrainian forces.
russia hesitates to buy ballistic missiles from Iran due to fears that, in this case, Ukraine may receive long-range ATACMS with a range of 300 km.
