Iraqi militias ed by the government of Iran would have sent to Russia a series of anti-tank missiles, RPGs and even ASTROS II rocket launchers of Brazilian origin.
According to information obtained by the British newspaper The Guardian, Iran sent a battery of S-300 anti-aircraft missiles, as well as its own analogue, the Bavar-373, said a source who helped organize the transfer of the missiles.
The Iraqi Hashd al-Shaabi militia, an umbrella organization of the Iraqi Army, is said to have transferred anti-tank missiles and Rocket Propelled Grenades (RPG) to Iran on March 26 through the Salamja border, being met by Iranian military, said a militia commander who controls the border.
On April 1, Hashd al-Shaabi dismantled and sent two ASTROS II rocket launchers (MLRS) manufactured in Brazil by Avibras to Iran, according to a source at the organization. The government of Saddam Hussein acquired 66 ASTROS II launchers in the 1980s. Iraq also produced the Sajil-60, a licensed version of the SS-60 rocket used by the Brazilian ASTROS.
In Iran, the missiles, RPGs and rockets were loaded onto three ships – two flying the Russian flag and one flying the Iranian flag – and crossed the Caspian Sea from the port of Bandar Anzali and sailed to Astrakhan, a Russian city in the Volga delta.
"We don't care where the heavy weapons go [because we don't need them right now]", said a Hashd al-Shaabi source. “Whatever is anti-US makes us happy.”
The arms transfers revealed by the The Guardian occurred with the help of Iran's arms smuggling networks and represent the latest progression in relations between Moscow and Tehran. Russia finds itself increasingly isolated and struggling to keep up with the battlefield as Western sanctions continue to mount.
Since the invasion of Ukraine began on February 24, the West has applied an increasing number of sanctions and blockades on oligarchs and the Russian government, including dual-use materials (civilian and military), such as spare parts for vehicles and certain types of electronic and optical devices.
Mohaned Hage Ali, member of the Carnegie Middle East Center, says “That kind of sophisticated weaponry [rocket launch systems] would make a big difference on the ground in Ukraine. Ḥashd al-Shaabi controls much of the border region with Iran, which would facilitate this transaction.”
“Other countries like China are having to be very careful about transferring weapons to Russia now, given the new sanctions situation. And Iran, as part of that axis, wants to ensure that Russia does not lose ground in this conflict. If the Putin regime is destabilized, it will have huge implications for Iran, particularly in Syria, where Damascus depends on Russian air and Russian coordinates to avoid direct conflict between them and Israel.”
The arms transfer comes as Russia prepares to enter a new stage of its offensive in Ukraine. suffering a huge number of casualties (2800 miscellaneous vehicles have already been lost, including 488 tanks), Moscow appears to have given up on the original plan to capture the capital Kiev and has been pulling back its troops.
The British newspaper claims that Russian ground forces are preparing for a new attack on the Donbas region, in the south-east of the country. At the same time, Kiev and the West point to humanitarian crimes against the Ukrainian civilian population.
