Iranian short-range missiles newly delivered to Russia will enable it to hit frontline Ukrainian targets with better precision and free up existing weaponry for attacks farther into the country, Britain’s Defense Ministry said Friday.
The Fath-360 can reach targets within 120 kilometers to an accuracy within 30 meters, the UK defense ministry statement said, enabling Russia "to preserve more of its longer-range capabilities for use against targets deeper inside Ukraine”.
The United States and top European powers imposed new sanctions this week against Iran and its state carrier Iran Air for the deliveries - the first missiles Iran is alleged to have delivered to Russia since it launched a full-scale invasion of Ukraine in 2022.
Iran and Russia have denied any missile transfers.
Russia has been producing a new long-range attack drone with Chinese engines and parts, Reuters reported Friday, adding that the new drones have been used in attacks against Ukraine. The new drones would likely “reduce Russian reliance on Iranian drones”, sources from a European intelligence agency were quoted as telling Reuters.
Iran has sent Russia hundreds of attack drones and artillery munitions, according to a weekly British intelligence report.
EU foreign policy chief Josep Borrell said on Friday that the bloc was mulling new sanctions on Iran's aviation sector in response to the missile flights.
"The European Union has repeatedly strongly cautioned Iran against transfers of ballistic missiles to Russia," Borrel said, adding that the EU would "respond swiftly and in coordination with international partners".
Iran's Foreign Ministry spokesman accused the EU of acting on misinformation and warned that Western sanctions will be met with an unspecified response from the Islamic Republic.
Russia's FSB security service announced on Friday that it would expel six British diplomats in Moscow, accusing them of espionage and sabotage, in a sign of deteriorating relations between the two nuclear-armed powers.
Britain has advocated allowing Ukraine to deploy western-supplied long-range missiles inside Russia, a position not yet endorsed by the United States.