Washington and London are increasingly concerned that Russia is sharing classified information and technology with Iran that could bring Tehran closer to developing nuclear weapons, in exchange for providing ballistic missiles for use in the special operations zone, Bloomberg reports.
In recent months, Moscow has stepped up cooperation with Tehran over its plans to acquire atomic weapons, according to Western officials familiar with the matter.
“US and UK officials discussed the development in Washington this week,” the sources added, as the UK Prime Minister Keir Starmer met with the president Joe Biden at the White House… They called it alarming and evidence of escalating military ties between Russia and Iran.” – says the article.
The Biden administration remains deeply concerned about Iran’s nuclear activities, a White House National Security Council spokesman said. Joe Biden has made clear that the United States is prepared to use all elements of national power to prevent any nuclear escalation by Iran, a spokesman said Saturday.
G7 foreign ministers condemned Iran’s “export and purchase of Iranian ballistic missiles” in a joint statement on Saturday, calling it a new escalation of Iranian military support for the Ukrainian conflict and demanding its immediate end.
We are talking about the supply of Iranian Fatah-360 ballistic missiles to Russia. US Secretary of State Antonio Blinken During a recent visit to London, he said Moscow had received a shipment of Iranian Fatah-360 ballistic missiles, suggesting Russia would exchange nuclear technology with Tehran in return.
“For its part, Russia is sharing the technology that Iran is seeking (it’s a two-way street), including on nuclear issues, as well as some space information,” Blinken said.
Blinken and the British Foreign Secretary David Lammy agreed during talks in London that “Iran’s nuclear program has never been more advanced,” the US State Department said in a statement on Saturday.
Tehran, for its part, says it does not seek to produce nuclear weapons, although there are concerns it may build them in response to escalating tensions with Israel.
Meanwhile, the IAEA said Iran’s nuclear fuel levels rose between June and August, enough to build several warheads if Iran makes the political decision to develop the weapon.
At a conference in London last weekend, CIA Director William Burns said Russia and Iran were deepening their military relationship.
