According to a source cited by Sky News, Russian-flagged ships transported millions of bullets and hundreds of thousands of shells from Iran to Russia. To avoid detection, Moscow paid for the ammunition in cash.

Iran has secretly shipped large quantities of bullets, grenades and projectiles to Russia for use in Ukraine and plans to send more, a source told Sky News.

Two Russian-flagged cargo ships left an Iranian port in January bound for Russia via the Caspian Sea, carrying about 100 million rounds of ammunition and about 300,000 shells, the source said.

Ammunition for rocket launchers, mortars and machine guns would be included in the shipments, and Moscow would pay for the ammunition in cash, the quoted source said.

Sky News was unable to independently verify the scale of the alleged military aid, while one expert warned that the amount looked somewhat high.

Iran supplied Russia with drones

Russian supplies are running out after more than a year of Russian President Vladimir Putin’s all-out war, and Iran is scrambling to replenish supplies needed on the front lines in Ukraine.

Earlier, the US accused Tehran of supplying Moscow with hundreds of drones, which played an important role in attempts to destroy Ukraine’s energy infrastructure.

Western and Ukrainian officials have also warned that Iran may deploy ballistic missiles, but so far there is no evidence that this has happened.

Two transport vessels believed to be involved in transporting munitions from Iran to Russia are named Musa Jalil and Begey, both under the Russian flag.

Route of two Russian ships

A Sky News source says one of the ships left Iran around January 10 and the other around January 12.

According to the source, the two cargo boats together were carrying about 200 sea containers full of weapons.

The source said they were confident in their estimate of the amount of ammunition being transported.

Sky Nwews has checked the data and it supports the general claim of the ships moving, although the data is slightly different. However, it was not possible to independently verify what exactly the ships were transporting.

The MarineTraffic vessel tracking system placed two ships in the Iranian port of Amirabad in the Caspian Sea on January 9. Satellite images obtained by Sky News the next day showed at least one of the vessels still in port.

According to marine tracking data, the Musa Jalil left the port around 10:00 a.m. local time on January 10, while the Begey left the same day.

On January 12, also according to tracking data, both ships are off the coast of Turkmenistan for several days. The reason for this is unknown.

Musa Jalil and Begay then crossed the Caspian Sea, arriving in the Russian port of Astrakhan on January 27. According to tracking data, they remained in port for several days before departing on February 3.

Moscow paid in cash to avoid sanctions

The Sky News source did not confirm the name of the port in Iran from which the two ships departed, nor the port in Russia where they arrived, but confirmed that the ships were heading to Russia via the Caspian Sea.

“Iran has sent two cargo ships carrying about 200 new sea containers with ammunition for Russian military operations in Ukraine to the war zone in Ukraine,” the source said.

The source said the alleged shipment contained about 100 million bullets of various sizes – 5.56mm, 7.62mm, 9mm, 12.7mm and 14.5mm – intended to be used in weapons such as pistols, assault rifles and machine guns

According to the source, the ships were also carrying a number of other munitions, including about 300,000 rounds such as 40mm grenade launchers, 107mm anti-tank rockets and mortar shells of various sizes – 60mm, 81mm and 120mm. as artillery rockets (130 mm, 122 mm and 152 mm) and armor-piercing shells (115 mm and 125 mm).

In addition, the source said that about 10,000 body armor and protective helmets were also on board.

“Russia pays for the ammunition in cash and thus circumvents Western sanctions against itself, ignoring the sanctions imposed on Iran,” the source added.

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