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Iranian UAVs used by Russia in Ukraine contain 'stolen' technology

Người Đưa TinNgười Đưa Tin05/05/2023


The Conflict Armament Research Center (CAR), a UK-based organization that studies military hardware components, has claimed that the Shahed-136 unmanned aerial vehicle (UAV) that Iran sold to Russia was developed based on German weapons technology - technology that Iran seized nearly 20 years ago.

The revelations, uncovered through a detailed analysis of parts recovered from the Ukrainian battlefield and shared exclusively with CNN, highlight the country's ability to copy and exploit technologies it illegally obtained.

Western officials fear that Russia may also share weapons seized from the Ukraine conflict with Iran. There is no evidence that Russia has done so.

But Tehran and Moscow have become closer than ever. Russia wants to buy ballistic missiles and drones from Iran; Iran wants investment and trade from Russia. Russia has become Iran’s largest foreign investor in the past year, according to Iranian officials.

World - Iranian UAVs used by Russia in Ukraine contain technology 'stolen' from the West

A Mado MD-550 engine recovered by Ukrainian security forces on December 30, 2022. Photo: CAR.

For Russia, Iranian drones are a cheaper alternative to expensive missiles that are increasingly scarce, according to Western officials. For example, experts say a Shahed-186 costs $20,000, a fraction of the price of a Kalibr cruise missile.

In October 2022, the head of Ukraine’s National Intelligence Council, Kyrylo Budanov, said that Russia had ordered 1,700 drones of various types from Iran. The Ukrainian military has also demonstrated its ability to shoot down Shahed-136s, but these shootdowns have exhausted Ukraine’s already stretched air defenses. Despite carrying a relatively small explosive load of only 40 kg, a precise strike from the Shahed-136 can still cause serious damage.

Operated by German technology

Between November 2022 and March 2023, CAR analyzed components from 20 Iranian drones and munitions in Ukraine, about half of which were Shahed-136s.

The organization determined that the motors used in the Shahed-136 were reverse engineered by an Iranian company called Oje Parvaz Mado Nafar - also known as Mado - in the city of Shokuhieh in Qom province. The company was banned from trading with the UK, US and European Union in December 2022.

World - Iranian UAVs used by Russia in Ukraine contain technology 'stolen' from the West (Image 2).

Cables in the Mado engine, bearing a serial number that could refer to the MD-550 engine model, were identified by CAR's field investigation team in Kyiv, Ukraine on January 20, 2023. Photo: CAR.

CAR researchers discovered Mado serial numbers on the ignition covers of drone engines, as well as several serial number segments used by Mado.

According to Western governments and the United Nations, Mado is a key player in Iran’s massive drone manufacturing industry. These numbers were also mentioned by UN investigators examining details of drone strikes in Saudi Arabia, which were allegedly carried out by Iran’s ally, the Houthis in Yemen.

Taimur Khan, a Gulf analyst at CAR, told CNN that Iran’s drone systems are constantly being improved and modernized. It “has demonstrated increasing precision in targeting and guidance, as well as resistance to jamming.”

A long journey

The Mado's engine design is the result of Iran's relentless efforts over the past 20 years to try to appropriate Western technology for use in drones and missiles in the face of widespread international sanctions against the country.

In 2006, Iran seized several drone engines made by the German company Limbach Flugmotoren. Three years later, an Iranian engineer named Yousef Aboutalebi announced that his company had successfully built a drone engine.
This company is the predecessor of Mado.

World - Iranian UAVs used by Russia in Ukraine contain technology 'stolen' from the West (Image 3).

Serial numbers on a Mado MD-550 engine, documented by CAR's field investigation team in Kyiv, Ukraine on November 2, 2022. Photo: CAR.

According to CAR, the company attempted to conceal its role in the production of the Shahed drone. Investigators said serial numbers on drone parts found in Ukraine had been erased, indicating an apparent attempt to conceal their origin.

“The deletion of these serial numbers prevented investigators from identifying the exchange network that brought critical parts to Iran,” CAR said.

World - Iranian UAVs used by Russia in Ukraine contain technology 'stolen' from the West (Image 4).

Other parts of the Mado engine also bear serial numbers starting with 100. Documented by CAR's field investigation team in Kyiv, Ukraine on January 20, 2023. Photo: CAR.

In addition, parts seized and copied by Iran also originated from missiles manufactured in the Czech Republic. A report by experts at the United Nations in 2020 said that the engine equipped in the Iranian Qud-1 missile used in the attack on Saudi Arabian oil refineries in 2019 was “an unlicensed copy of the TJ-100 turbofan engine manufactured by PBS Velká Bíteš” of the Czech Republic.

Czech engine designs are also used in Iran's Heidar-2 missiles, experts say.

The Czech company said it had never supplied the engines to Iran or Yemen, but Iran has become adept at bypassing sensitive technology controls; in some cases, the country may use front companies.

A UN panel has found that some parts exported by a Czech manufacturing company to a company in Hong Kong (China) in 2010 were used in Iranian missiles in 2019.

Iran has “acquired a number of components and technologies from Western countries for use in its drone program. These are things that Iran has acquired through opaque sources,” said CAR’s Taimur Khan, making identifying components a key technique for efforts to improve export controls and sanctions.

Growing Partnership

The drone orders have strengthened ties between Iran and Russia, which have grown stronger as the two countries have been isolated from the global financial and economic system.

“We define our relationship with Russia as a strategic relationship. We are working together on many fronts, especially on the economic front,” Finance Minister Ehsan Khandouzi told the Financial Times last month.

World - Iranian UAVs used by Russia in Ukraine contain technology 'stolen' from the West (Image 5).

Ignition cover on a Mado MD-550 engine. CAR researchers found Mado serial numbers on these covers. Photo: CAR.

The revenue from the order of hundreds of Shahed-136s to Russia will likely be reinvested into improving the arms industry. And, this partnership could lead to more experiments.

Mr. Khan believes that "military cooperation between the two countries will continue to strengthen."

There is also the possibility that Russia will use its partnership with Iran to develop its own military drone production capabilities. But until that happens, the Russian military will likely remain a loyal customer of Iran, a country that has turned the ability to circumvent sanctions to bolster its own arms industry into an art form.

Nguyen Quang Minh (According to CNN)



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