— I have reports from our intelligence services showing that Russia is doing this, saying “we will not give intelligence to Iran if the US stops giving it to Ukraine.” Is this blackmail? Of course! — Zelensky said in an interview with Reuters. The Ukrainian leader did not say to whom the quoted remarks by the Russian authorities were intended.
Trump: Russia seems to be helping Iran a little
Russia officially denies providing intelligence support to Iran during the ongoing war between that country and the US and Israel. According to many media outlets, including: AP agency, CNN television or the Washington Post newspaper, such cooperation does take place.
US President Donald Trump said on March 13 that Russian leader Vladimir Putin “probably helps” Iran a little bit. In an interview for Reuters, Zelensky noted that the drones Iran uses to attack American bases in the Middle East and countries in the region contain Russian parts.
Iran and Russia cooperated in drone development. Iranian-designed machines are used by Russia to attack Ukraine, which is successfully developing anti-drone technologies. The authorities in Kiev have announced in recent days that they have sent teams to five Middle Eastern countries to help fight Iranian drones. Zelensky emphasized that Ukraine can now produce 2,000. intercepting drones per day, if funding is available.
The Ukrainian president announced that his country wants to sign long-term cooperation agreements in the field of unmanned aerial vehicles with the Persian Gulf countries.
The leader added that Ukraine has sufficient capabilities to produce long-range weapons to independently respond to Russian attacks using such weapons. He also assured that the US continues to transfer weapons to Kiev despite the ongoing war with Iran. He added that this also applies to missiles for Patriot air defense systems, although these deliveries “are not as large as needed.”
Zelensky also told Reuters that the US made its offer of security guarantees for Ukraine, which are necessary for peace, conditional on handing over the entire Donbas to Russia.
The president warned that if his country gave Donbas to Russia, it would threaten the security not only of Ukraine, but also of Europe.
