Ukraine’s President, Volodymyr Zelenskiy, has accused Russia of trying to pressure the United States by using its intelligence ties with Iran as leverage.
In an interview with Reuters in Kyiv, Zelenskiy claimed that Moscow offered to stop sharing military intelligence with Iran but only if US agreed to cut off intelligence support to Ukraine.
According to him, Ukrainian intelligence has what he described as “irrefutable evidence” that Russia is still passing sensitive information to Iran, despite publicly denying it.
However, he did not provide further details about the evidence.
“I have reports showing Russia is saying it will stop sharing intelligence with Iran if the U.S. stops supporting Ukraine,” Zelenskiy said. “Isn’t that blackmail? Absolutely.”
He did not specify who Russia allegedly made the proposal to.
Russia has repeatedly denied helping Iran in its ongoing conflict with the United States and Israel.
U.S. officials have also said Moscow issued similar denials directly to Washington during recent discussions.
Zelenskiy also revealed that some Iranian drones used in attacks against U.S. forces and their allies in the Middle East contain Russian-made components a claim likely to raise further concerns among Western allies.
Ukraine, which has faced frequent attacks from Iranian-designed Shahed drones since Russia’s invasion in 2022, is now sharing its experience in countering such threats.
Zelenskiy said Kyiv is already working with Gulf countries, including Saudi Arabia, the United Arab Emirates, and Qatar, to help defend against drone attacks.
He added that Ukraine hopes to secure long-term agreements with some of these countries to support the production of drone interceptors and strengthen its air defence systems.
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