#Iran and #Russia are pursuing greater aviation cooperation which could help the Kremlin weather international sanctions and fight in #Ukraine. @Kat_Lawlor and I have been tracking deepening Russo-Iranian cooperation since the invasion of Ukraine began. A thread. 1/8
https://twitter.com/Levitt_Matt/status/1552673494349107202
Moscow and Tehran agreed on July 26 to increase passenger flights from Iran to Russia from 2 to 35 per week. They also discussed Iran sending aviation parts and providing Russian aircraft maintenance, repair, and technical support in Iran. 2/8
Iran and Russia could use this arrangement to support various sanction evasion efforts. Iran could support Russian efforts to rebuild and repair its civilian and military aircraft as well. 3/8
Iran could also use the increased flights to send drones and other military equipment to support Russia’s invasion of Ukraine. I wrote about the types of drones Iran may provide the Kremlin last week: isw.pub/IRDronesTech 4/8
The Iranian officials responsible for these aviation deals are deeply connected to the #IRGC, its external operations, and sanctions evasion efforts. 5/8
The head of Iran’s Civil Aviation Organization (CAO), Mohammad Mohammadi Bakhsh, previously controlled the US-sanctioned Pouya Air—an Iranian company that sent military materials and personnel to #Syria for the IRGC. 6/8
The CAO is under Roads and Urban Development Minister Rostam Ghassemi—a Quds Force officer deeply tied to the IRGC’s economic network and business dealings abroad. He led efforts to export Iranian oil to Syria and Lebanon, violating US sanctions, in 2021. 7/8
@Kat_Lawlor, @kitanehf, @zachpolicy, and the rest of the @criticalthreats and @TheStudyofWar teams will continue to track this growing cooperation. 8/8
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