A new assessment from the US Defense Intelligence Agency (DIA) is predicting that when the UN Security Council arms embargo on Iran expires in 2020, the expectation is Iran will seek to buy more advanced fighter jets and tanks from Russia and China.
The assessment is said to detail Iran’s military capabilities, declaring Iran to have an “unrivaled” missile system across the entire Middle East, and to be making rapid improvements in their drone systems.
US officials told reporters that the US sanctions on Iran would continue even if the UN arms embargo is lifted, so the US isn’t likely to secure any arms sales to Iran. Iran has not publicly commented on what they might be interested in.
Iran’s most recent import tanks are T-72S systems acquired from Russia. Iran also has its own locally-made Karrar, which some analysts say has more in common with the Russian T-90 system.
Iran might consider upgraded fighters a high priority, because the US has been pushing advanced fighters on Iran’s regional rivals and Iran’s Air Force is small and built at least in part around US-provided planes from before the revolution.
Go, Team Iran! Resist & repel the US/Israeli/Saudi Axis of Evil.
“declaring Iran to have an “unrivaled” missile system across the entire Middle East, and to be making rapid improvements in their drone systems”
I would like to know a lot more about that claim.
Is it hype of a threat, like the constant barrage of Soviet threat papers during the Cold War?
Is it a real ability that we’ve been pretending isn’t there, a different distortion of reality?
If it is real, what does that mean for the US and Israel plans for aggression (yes, they do plan that)?
Iran will likely buy a few squadron of Russian fighter jets but more likely try to buy something they can license to build themselves. Sanctions and the genocidal Iraq war in the 80’s have impressed upon them the need to be self-sufficient for their defense needs.
They might want to acquire some more naval assets as well, again, something they can build after acquisition. The U.S. will incorrectly declare this to be a sign of weakness, that they can’t afford it because we are hearless sociopaths.