"Russia sharing satellite intel and drone tactics"...Signs of involvement in the Iran conflict

[The Financial News] Evidence has emerged that Russia is effectively intervening indirectly in the war by providing Iran with satellite intelligence and even drone tactics. As tactics honed on the battlefield in Ukraine are transferred to the Middle East, the nature of the conflict is rapidly becoming more sophisticated.
On the 16th (local time), The Wall Street Journal (WSJ), citing European intelligence authorities and diplomatic sources in the Middle East, reported that Russia is supplying Iran with satellite imagery and upgraded drone technology. In particular, Russia is said to have enhanced the communications, navigation, and precision-strike capabilities of Iranian-made Shahed drones and then sent the related components back to Iran.
Russia’s support has gone beyond a simple transfer of technology and expanded into the realm of tactical advising. Drawing on experience accumulated in the war in Ukraine, Moscow is reportedly providing Iran with concrete operational guidance, including the scale of drone deployments, flight altitudes, and strike methods. There have also been earlier reports that Russia shared information with Iran on the locations of United States Armed Forces and allied military assets in the Middle East.
This cooperation is believed to have intensified from the very early stages of the current conflict and has recently advanced to the point where Russia is directly providing satellite intelligence. Experts say this resembles the kind of information support that the United States and Europe have been offering to Ukraine.
The impact is already visible on the battlefield. Iran has been using drones to first disable radar and then following up with missile strikes to hit US military assets, a tactic similar to what Russia has employed in Ukraine. Some analysts suggest that Russian intelligence support may have played a role in Iran’s precision strikes on US facilities in Bahrain, Kuwait, and Oman, including the early-warning radar of the Terminal High Altitude Area Defense (THAAD) system in Jordan.
Satellite imagery allows precise identification of target locations and movement routes, making it useful both for target selection before a strike and for post-strike damage assessment. Military experts note that if the information supplied by Russia includes data on high-value targets such as aircraft, ammunition depots, and air-defense assets, Iran’s operational effectiveness could increase significantly.
This cooperation is turning the conflict from a purely regional clash into one with the characteristics of a proxy war. As a structure takes hold in which Russia provides intelligence from the rear and Iran applies it on the front lines, the link between the Middle Eastern battlefield and the war in Ukraine is becoming increasingly clear.

km@fnnews.com Kim Kyung-min Reporter