2023-10-04 20:12:00
(CNN) — The United States will deliver thousands of weapons and ammunition seized from Iranin a decision that could help resolve some of the serious problems facing Kyiv’s armed forces, as they wait to receive more money and material from the United States and its allies, official US sources reported.
US Central Command (CENTCOM) has already transferred more than one million rounds of seized Iranian ammunition to the Ukrainian military, the agency announced Wednesday. The transfer took place Monday, CENTCOM said in a news release.
“The Government obtained ownership of these munitions on July 20, 2023, through the Department of Justice’s civil forfeiture claims against Iran’s Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC),” it says. the notice.
The Justice Department announced in March that it was seeking the seizure of one million rounds of Iranian ammunition, thousands of proximity fuzes for rocket-propelled grenades, and thousands of pounds of rocket-propelled grenade propellant that the Navy seized from Iran when it was in transit to Yemen.
“These munitions were originally seized by US Central Command naval forces from the stateless transit ship MARWAN 1, on December 9, 2022. The munitions were being transferred by the IRGC to the Houthis in Yemen in violation of Resolution 2216 of the United Nations Security Council,” the statement said.
The Biden administration has been weighing for months how to legally send the seized weapons, which are stored at CENTCOM facilities across the Middle East, to the Ukrainians.
Over the past year, the US Navy seized thousands of Iranian assault rifles and more than a million rounds of ammunition from ships used by Iran to ship weapons to Yemen. The seizures, often carried out with partner regional forces, target small stateless vessels on routes historically used to smuggle weapons to the Houthis in Yemen.
In mid-January, the United States assisted French forces in seizing 3,000 assault rifles headed from Iran to Yemen, as well as 23 guided anti-tank missiles. Following the seizure, the United States took custody of the confiscated weapons.
This seizure of illegal weapons capped a two-month period in which the US and its partners confiscated a total of 5,000 weapons and 1.6 million rounds of ammunition, according to Central Command.
Justice Department and Defense officials worked together to find a legal path to ship the weapons to Ukraine, officials said, and one way is through U.S. civil forfeiture authorities.
The Justice Department this year filed at least two lawsuits seeking forfeiture of seized Iranian weapons and ammunition. Separate from the March announcement, the DOJ announced in July that it was seeking the seizure of “more than 9,000 rifles, 284 machine guns, approximately 194 rocket launchers, more than 70 anti-tank guided missiles, and more than 700,000 rounds of ammunition” seized from Iran by the US Navy. USA
“At the end of the day, Ukraine needs a variety of war supplies, and while this is not a solution to all of Ukraine’s military needs, it will provide critical support,” said Jonathan Lord, senior researcher and director of the Middle East security program. East of the Center for a New American Security, which in February pressured the United States to send Iranian weapons seized in a opinion article.
Lord added that the move could also have consequences for Iran’s relationship with Russia.
“For more than a year, Iranian drones in the hands of the Russian military have been used to attack and kill Ukrainian civilians,” Lord said. “There is poetic justice in Ukraine using seized Iranian weapons to defend its people against Russia’s criminal invasion and abuses. Furthermore, this policy may put further pressure on the burgeoning relationship between Moscow and Tehran.”
The decision could drive a wedge between Iran and Russia, which have formed a de facto defense partnership in recent months, with Iran supplying Russia with drones for its war in Ukraine and Russia cooperating with Iran on missile and air defense production.
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