The White House on Thursday said that Russia is using Iranian drones launched from the Crimean Peninsula to attack Ukrainian forces and that Iranian troops are in the region.
John Kirby, the communications coordinator at the National Security Council, told reporters that Iranian personnel are on the Crimean Peninsula and that it’s evidence Tehran is involved in the war.
Kirby did not provide direct evidence for his assertion.
“Iranian military personnel were on the ground in Crimea and assisted with these operations,” he added. “Russia has received dozens of UAVs so far and will likely continue to receive additional shipments in the future.”
It means that the Iranian government is now “directly involved” in the monthslong war, although he said there was a “relatively small number” of Iranians on the peninsula. Russia annexed the Crimean Peninsula in 2014.
Kirby said the United States is concerned that Russia may attempt to obtain Iranian surface-to-surface missiles and other weapons to use in the Ukraine conflict. At the same time, he accused Iran and Russia of lying about their relationship.
“Iran and Russia, they can lie to the world, but they certainly can’t hide the facts, and the fact is this: Tehran is now directly engaged on the ground,” he said.
There was no immediate public reaction to the U.S. allegations from Tehran. Russia’s defense and foreign ministries also have not issued public comments on the claim.
Kirby indicated that the United States saw no need at this point to continue trying to negotiate with Tehran over Iran’s return to President Barack Obama’s Iran nuclear deal with six world powers in 2015.
“We are way far apart with the Iranians in terms of a return to the deal, so we are simply not focused on that right now. They had demands that were well in excess of what the [Iran nuclear deal] was supposed to cover. We are not focused on the diplomacy at this point,” he said.
“These cowardly drone strikes are an act of desperation. By enabling these strikes, these individuals and a manufacturer have caused the people of Ukraine untold suffering. We will ensure that they are held to account for their actions,” said Foreign Secretary James Cleverly in the statement.
