The disclosure raises new questions about whether Moscow’s diplomatic ties to Tehran could translate into material military advantage for Iran, and adds complexity to President Donald Trump’s stated goal of brokering a peace settlement in the parallel Russia-Ukraine conflict.
Russia has provided Iran with information that could help Tehran strike American warships, aircraft, and other assets in the Persian Gulf, two U.S. officials said Friday — the first reported sign that Moscow has sought involvement in the week-old war between the United States, Israel, and Iran.
The officials, who were not authorized to discuss the sensitive matter publicly and spoke on condition of anonymity, cautioned that U.S. intelligence has not established that Russia is directing Iran on how to use the information. Details were first reported by The Washington Post.
The disclosure adds a new dimension to an already complex conflict, raising questions about whether Moscow’s diplomatic support for Tehran could translate into material military advantage for Iran, and complicating President Donald Trump’s stated goal of brokering a peace settlement in the parallel Russia-Ukraine conflict.
White House and Pentagon responses
The White House did not deny the intelligence-sharing reports. Press secretary Karoline Leavitt told reporters Friday that the Russian support “clearly is not making any difference with respect to the military operations in Iran because we are completely decimating them.”
Leavitt declined to say whether Trump had spoken to Russian President Vladimir Putin about the reported intelligence sharing, or whether she believed Russia should face repercussions, saying she would let the president speak to that himself.
Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth, in a CBS “60 Minutes” interview Friday, said the U.S. is “tracking everything” and factoring the reports into battle plans.
“The American people can rest assured their commander in chief is well aware of who’s talking to who,” Hegseth said. “And anything that shouldn’t be happening, whether it’s in public or back-channeled, is being confronted and confronted strongly.”
Trump himself scolded Fox News reporter Peter Doocy when Doocy raised the matter at the end of a White House meeting focused on college-athlete compensation.
“What a stupid question that is to be asking at this time,” Trump said. “We’re talking about something else.”
Kremlin reaction
In Moscow, Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov said there had been no request from Tehran for military assistance. Pushed on whether Moscow had provided any military or intelligence assistance to Iran since the conflict began, Peskov refrained from comment.
“We are in dialogue with the Iranian side, with representatives of the Iranian leadership, and will certainly continue this dialogue,” he said.
Background: deepening Russia-Iran ties
Russia and Iran have significantly tightened their relationship in recent years. The Biden administration declassified intelligence findings showing that Iran supplied Russia with attack drones and helped construct a drone-manufacturing facility; the former administration also accused Tehran of transferring short-range ballistic missiles to Russia for use in its war against Ukraine.
Iran has deployed the same Shahed drone model — long used in strikes against Ukrainian cities — in retaliatory attacks throughout the Persian Gulf region since the U.S.-Israel military campaign began.
Ukraine offers counter-drone expertise
Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy said Friday that the United States and several Middle East allies are now seeking Ukraine’s expertise in countering those drones. Zelenskyy said he had spoken with representatives of the United Arab Emirates, Qatar, Bahrain, Jordan, and Kuwait about possible cooperation.
“Ukraine knows how to defend against Shahed drone attacks because our cities have faced them almost every night,” Ukraine’s ambassador to the United States, Olga Stefanishyna, said. “When our partners are in need, we are always ready to help.”
The outreach comes as the Pentagon faces questions about whether the Iran conflict is drawing down U.S. weapons stockpiles. Trump this week complained that former President Joe Biden provided billions of dollars in high-end weaponry to Ukraine without replenishing American reserves.
Asked whether the intelligence-sharing report had shaken Trump’s confidence in Putin’s capacity to reach a Ukraine peace deal, Leavitt said the president “would say that peace is still an achievable objective with respect to the Russia-Ukraine war.”