Iranian drone downed reveals rapid supply chain from China to Russia

An Iranian drone downed by Ukrainian forces contained a Chinese part that was manufactured and sent to Russian forces within three months, WSJ reports. The presence of this part reveals a continued supply from China to Iran, indicating an ongoing flow of essential components for Iran’s drone program, despite US efforts to disrupt the global supply chain.

Investigators from Conflict Armament Research, a U.K.-based group monitoring global weapons supply chains, discovered that the drone contained a voltage converter believed to have been produced in China in mid-January 2023. This marked the first instance in 2023 of such a component being found in these drones, showing how quickly Iran can construct and ship drones to Russia. This Chinese part was produced in January, shipped to Iran, integrated, and finally used against Ukraine in April.

The discovery of the 2023 Chinese part in the largely intact V-shaped drone, known as a Shahed-136, underscores the challenges the US and its allies face in preventing the flow of parts from around the world to Iran’s drone factories. China and Hong Kong have traditionally served as distribution centers for Iran’s drone production, as outlined in United Nations reports. The growing involvement of Chinese companies in assisting Iran has been identified by the Wisconsin Project on Nuclear Arms Control, a Washington-based nonprofit.

Further examination of the downed drone provided additional evidence of its Iranian origin, said Damien Spleeters, deputy director of operations at Conflict Armament Research. The drone contained an Iranian-made engine, produced by a company that has been repeatedly sanctioned by the US and its allies for its role in Iran’s drone program.

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