The Financial Times says it has obtained documents showing Russia has agreed to supply 90 guided missile launchers to the Islamic Republic of Iran. This newspaper reported on Thursday, November 5, that based on the production plan of a major Russian defense industry company in 2024 and 2025, an export order was placed for 90 helicopter-mounted missile launchers for a registered customer identified by the code "K-10".
The Financial Times says a review of documents from other Russian arms deals shows the code is used to refer to Iran. The mentioned document is related to a letter sent by the Russian "Vimpal" company, one of the missile equipment manufacturers, to another Russian defense industry company in May 2024.
However, the newspaper emphasized that the obtained documents do not specify whether the ordered launchers were finally delivered to Iran or not. The US State Department issued a statement on Wednesday, November 4, announcing that it had sanctioned two individuals and a company for their involvement in efforts to provide anti-aircraft missiles to the Iranian regime.
According to this statement, Mohammad Ali Talebov, CEO of Belarus-based "Brit Neskh" was involved in the company's efforts to purchase weapons on behalf of Iran. This company acted as an intermediary between Chinese and Iranian companies and participated in the purchase of hundreds of anti-missile defense systems. The US State Department also sanctioned Vanguard Tactical Supply Limited of Nigeria for its involvement in trying to supply Chinese-made missile systems to Iran using fake end-user identities. Alisher Dumolozhanov, a man based in Russia, was also sanctioned for his role in trying to secure those systems.