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<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/section>\n<\/div><\/div>\n<\/div>\nRussia has been providing Iran with real-time intelligence on the locations of American military assets in the Middle East, including warships and aircraft, potentially helping Tehran target US forces during the ongoing conflict, according to a report citing officials familiar with the intelligence.According to The Washington Post, three officials said Moscow has shared information on the locations of US warships, aircraft and other military assets since the war began on Saturday. The officials spoke on condition of anonymity because of the sensitivity of the matter.The assistance marks the first reported indication that another major US adversary may be indirectly involved in the conflict, which has rapidly escalated across the region.\u201cIt does seem like it\u2019s a pretty comprehensive effort,\u201d one of the officials told the newspaper.<\/p>\n Officials said the extent of Russia\u2019s targeting support was not fully clear, but noted that Iran\u2019s own ability to track US forces had been degraded in the early days of the war.Analysts say the reported intelligence sharing could help explain the precision of some Iranian strikes on US-linked targets. Since the conflict began, Iran has launched thousands of one-way attack drones and hundreds of missiles toward US military positions, embassies and other targets in the region.One of the attacks on Sunday killed six US troops in Kuwait and injured several others when an Iranian drone struck a military facility.Dara Massicot, a Russia military expert at the Carnegie Endowment for International Peace, said some of Iran\u2019s strikes have targeted critical infrastructure such as radar systems.\u201cIran is making very precise hits on early warning radars or over-the-horizon radars,\u201d she said. \u201cThey\u2019re doing this in a very targeted way. They\u2019re going after command and control.\u201dThe CIA station at the US embassy in Riyadh, Saudi Arabia\u2019s capital, was also struck in recent days.<\/p>\n Experts say Russia\u2019s advanced satellite capabilities could significantly improve Iran\u2019s targeting ability.Iran has only a limited number of military-grade satellites and lacks its own satellite constellation, making imagery from Russia particularly valuable. Moscow has also refined its intelligence and targeting capabilities during the war in Ukraine.Nicole Grajewski of the Harvard Kennedy School\u2019s Belfer Center, who studies Russia\u2013Iran cooperation, said the quality of Iran\u2019s retaliatory strikes appears to have improved.\u201cThey\u2019re getting through air defenses,\u201d she said, adding that the strikes showed a high degree of \u201csophistication\u201d in the selection of targets and the ability to overwhelm some US and allied defence systems.<\/p>\n The CIA and the Pentagon declined to comment on the report.A White House spokeswoman, Anna Kelly, did not address the alleged Russian assistance but said the US campaign was weakening Iran\u2019s military capabilities.\u201cThe Iranian regime is being absolutely crushed,\u201d she said. \u201cTheir ballistic missile retaliation is decreasing every day, their navy is being wiped out, their production capacity is being demolished, and proxies are hardly putting up a fight.\u201dUS defence secretary Pete Hegseth said earlier this week that Russia and China were \u201cnot really a factor here\u201d when asked about their possible involvement.Two officials cited in the report said China does not appear to be assisting Iran\u2019s military response, despite close ties between the two countries.<\/p>\n Russia has publicly called for an end to the conflict, describing it as an \u201cunprovoked act of armed aggression\u201d. The Russian embassy in Washington did not respond to a request for comment from The Washington Post.The reported intelligence sharing also reflects the evolving dynamics among US adversaries. During the Ukraine war, Iran, China and North Korea have provided various forms of military or material support to Russia, while the United States has supplied Ukraine with weapons and intelligence to improve targeting of Russian forces.Iran has been a key partner for Moscow in that conflict, providing technology for low-cost one-way attack drones that Russia has used extensively against Ukrainian cities and infrastructure.\u201cThe Russians are more than aware of the assistance that we\u2019re giving the Ukrainians,\u201d one of the officials told the newspaper. \u201cI think they were very happy to try to get some payback.\u201dDespite the reported intelligence support, analysts say Moscow is unlikely to directly enter the conflict as it remains heavily focused on the war in Ukraine.\u201cThe Kremlin is very much considering this is not their problem and not their war,\u201d Massicot said, adding that from a strategic standpoint \u201cUkraine is still far and away the number one priority.\u201d<\/div>\n\nIntelligence sharing and Iranian strikes
<\/h3>\n<\/p>\nSatellite capabilities and improved targeting
<\/h3>\n<\/p>\nWashington response and China\u2019s role
<\/h3>\n<\/p>\nWider geopolitical context
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