In July, the Wall Street Journal reported that Russia was considering sending the missiles.
Press reports have not previously mentioned Iranian mediation.
The Houthi group has launched numerous drone and missile attacks on ships in key Red Sea shipping lanes since November in support of the Palestinians in Israel’s war in the Gaza Strip. Gaza.
The attacks have sunk at least two ships and captured a third, disrupting global maritime trade by forcing shipping companies to divert vessels, according to industry sources.
This raised insurance costs for ships sailing in the Red Sea.
In response, I struck US Britain has targeted Houthi sites, but the strikes have failed to stop the group’s attacks.
Two regional officials familiar with the talks said the Houthis and the Russians have met in Tehran at least twice this year and that talks are underway to provide dozens of missiles, with a range of about 300 kilometers, and that further meetings are expected in Tehran in the coming weeks.
Russia has previously supplied Yakhont missiles to the Iranian-allied Lebanese group Hezbollah.
One of the sources said that the talks began during the era of the late Iranian president. Ebrahim Raisi who died in a helicopter crash.
“Russia is negotiating with the Houthis over the transfer of Yakhont hypersonic anti-ship missiles,” a Western intelligence source said. “The Iranians are mediating the talks but don’t want to sign off on them.”
Neither Iran’s mission to the United Nations nor the Russian Defense Ministry responded to requests for comment.
Mohamed Abdel Salam, the official spokesman, said: Houthi group “We have no knowledge of what you mentioned,” he told Reuters.
A senior US official declined to name the specific systems that could be transferred but confirmed that Russia was discussing supplying the Houthis with missiles, describing the development as “very troubling.”
Closer ties between Russia and Iran
Russia and Iran are working to strengthen military ties amid Russia’s war in Ukraine.
The United States said earlier this month that Tehran had transferred ballistic missiles to Moscow for use against Ukraine.
Three sources said that one of the motives for Moscow to arm the Houthis is the possibility that Western countries will decide to allow Ukraine to use Western weapons to strike targets deep inside Russia.
Russian President Vladimir Putin warned in June that Moscow It could send advanced, long-range weapons — similar to those the United States and its allies are providing to Ukraine — to the West’s adversaries around the world.
The Yakhont missile is considered one of the most advanced anti-ship missiles in the world. It is designed to fly above the sea surface to avoid detection and reaches a speed of twice the speed of sound, making it difficult to intercept.
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Seven sources said that Russia has not yet decided to transfer Yakhont missilesalso known as the P-800 Onyx, which experts said would allow the militant group to strike commercial vessels in the Red Sea with greater precision and increase the threat to U.S. and European warships that provide protection to shipping traffic.
In July, the Wall Street Journal reported that Russia was considering sending the missiles.
Press reports have not previously mentioned Iranian mediation.
The Houthi group has launched numerous drone and missile attacks on ships in key Red Sea shipping lanes since November in support of the Palestinians in Israel’s war in the Gaza Strip. Gaza.
The attacks have sunk at least two ships and captured a third, disrupting global maritime trade by forcing shipping companies to divert vessels, according to industry sources.
This raised insurance costs for ships sailing in the Red Sea.
In response, I struck US Britain has targeted Houthi sites, but the strikes have failed to stop the group’s attacks.
Two regional officials familiar with the talks said the Houthis and the Russians have met in Tehran at least twice this year and that talks are underway to provide dozens of missiles, with a range of about 300 kilometers, and that further meetings are expected in Tehran in the coming weeks.
Russia has previously supplied Yakhont missiles to the Iranian-allied Lebanese group Hezbollah.
One of the sources said that the talks began during the era of the late Iranian president. Ebrahim Raisi who died in a helicopter crash.
“Russia is negotiating with the Houthis over the transfer of Yakhont hypersonic anti-ship missiles,” a Western intelligence source said. “The Iranians are mediating the talks but don’t want to sign off on them.”
Neither Iran’s mission to the United Nations nor the Russian Defense Ministry responded to requests for comment.
Mohamed Abdel Salam, the official spokesman, said: Houthi group “We have no knowledge of what you mentioned,” he told Reuters.
A senior US official declined to name the specific systems that could be transferred but confirmed that Russia was discussing supplying the Houthis with missiles, describing the development as “very troubling.”
Closer ties between Russia and Iran
Russia and Iran are working to strengthen military ties amid Russia’s war in Ukraine.
The United States said earlier this month that Tehran had transferred ballistic missiles to Moscow for use against Ukraine.
Three sources said that one of the motives for Moscow to arm the Houthis is the possibility that Western countries will decide to allow Ukraine to use Western weapons to strike targets deep inside Russia.
Russian President Vladimir Putin warned in June that Moscow It could send advanced, long-range weapons — similar to those the United States and its allies are providing to Ukraine — to the West’s adversaries around the world.
The Yakhont missile is considered one of the most advanced anti-ship missiles in the world. It is designed to fly above the sea surface to avoid detection and reaches a speed of twice the speed of sound, making it difficult to intercept.
