Russia is mulling sending fighter jets to Iran as part of an expanding military alliance that has seen Tehran ship artillery and tank rounds to Moscow for its invasion of Ukraine, the White House said Friday.
White House national security spokesperson John Kirby told reporters that Iran had shipped the weapons to Russia in November and, in exchange, Russia was offering “unprecedented defense cooperation,” including missiles, electronics and fighter jets.
Iran is also seeking to purchase attack helicopters, radars and combat trainer aircraft.
“When we talked about the growing defense relationship between Iran and Russia, we were concerned it was going to go both ways and those concerns are certainly becoming realized,” Mr. Kirby said. “This defense cooperation is not only, of course, not good for the people of Ukraine … but it’s certainly not good for the Middle East.”
