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Russia's use of Iranian drones in Ukraine hints at reliance on Iran

Problems equipping Russian troops with "nationally developed drones" leave Russia's military primarily operating Iranian drones.

A Ukrainian serviceman carries a downed Russian drone.
A Ukrainian serviceman carries a downed Russian drone in the area of a research institute, part of Ukraine's National Academy of Science, after a strike, in northwestern Kyiv, on March 22, 2022. — ARIS MESSINIS/AFP via Getty Images

The use of Iranian unmanned aerial vehicles (UAVs) by Russian forces in Ukraine has ceased to be taboo in Russian society.

Officials continue to call news about Iranian drone deliveries to Russia "artificially promoted" "fakes," but the Russian press writes about it quite freely and without hesitation, despite current laws that prohibit disseminating data about the army that contradict official ones. 

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