On September 6, 2024, the Wall Street Journal reported that made-in-Iran, short-range, ballistic missiles had arrived in Russia. Iran officially denied the report, but apparently that memo did not reach all members of Iran’s national security apparatus. On Saturday, Ahmad Bakhshayesh-Ardestani, an Australia-educated member of the Islamic Republic’s parliamentary committee on national security (who previously served on the committee between 2012 and 2016), confirmed that Iran was exporting missiles to Russia.
Bakhshayesh-Ardestani said Iran is bartering missiles and drones in exchange for wheat and soy. Likely, the financial restrictions on the two states are preventing trade through capital. He added, “Since they imposed sanctions on our oil, we are forced to sell oil to China at a discount and sometimes receive credit and goods in return.” He added, “Even when we want to receive cash, we must give half of it to foreign exchange bureau and other countries’ banks; it’s natural that we need to sell drones and missiles.”
In October 2023, the United States, United Kingdom, France, Germany, and the European Union allowed the United Nations embargo on missile trade with Iran to expire, despite warnings that Iran would export its missiles to Russia, which could then use them against Ukraine.
Before the expiration of the UN embargo, missile trade with Iran would result in a Security Council vote to snap back UN sanctions. Now, this opportunity has been lost.
Asked whether Iran risks sanctions by exporting missiles to Russia, Bakhshayesh-Ardestani rebuked, “There is nothing darker than black. We give missiles to Hezbollah, Hamas, and the Hashd al-Shaabi. Why not Russia?” Simply put, by acquiescing to Iranian trade with terrorists, President Joe Biden and many of his predecessors convinced Iranian leaders they would suffer no consequence for expanding such trade outside of the Middle East.
Bakhshayesh-Ardestani’s remarks confirm two things. First, fears about the consequence of lifting sanctions are now realized. Second, financial sanctions on Iran make life difficult, but Tehran finds ways to get around them.
The relationship among Iran, China, and Russia continues to grow. Iran has signed a 25-year security agreement with China, rumored to include lending a port in the Persian Gulf to the People’s Liberation Army-Navy. Iran and Russia also have been negotiating a 20-year strategic agreement. Russian President Vladimir Putin has confirmed these negotiations, though President Ebrahim Raisi’s death has delayed the process.
The news of the delivery of the missiles came on the same day as Abbas Araghchi, Iran’s new foreign minister, criticized Russia over its apparent support for an Azerbaijan-Turkey corridor across southern Armenia that Russian forces might control. “Any threats against the territorial integrity of our neighbors, or redrawing maps, whether in the north, or the south, or the east, or the west is unacceptable and counts as a red line for Iran,” he tweeted.
Bakhshayesh-Ardestani suggested that Putin understands Supreme Leader Ali Khamenei’s objection to the corridor but seeks to punish Armenia “for its closeness with the West.” At the end of the day, he acknowledged, “Russia is our ally.”
The broader point? American policymakers may still believe Washington can exploit traditional divisions among U.S. adversaries, but even if the State Department were as adroit as they believe, those days appear to be over. Iran’s foreign ministry may deny malign activities, but they are often out of the loop and even Iranian politicians do not take their statements seriously. It is time to wake up. From Tehran to Moscow to Beijing and Pyongyang, America’s adversaries are willing to put their own disputes aside to try to checkmate Washington and defeat those on the front line in the defense of the liberal order.
Shay Khatiri is vice president of Development as a senior fellow at the Yorktown Institute.
