Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky said Saturday he would provide the United States with evidence showing that Russia is helping Iran attack U.S. bases in the Middle East through satellite surveillance.
“Since the beginning of July, we have been observing active Russian satellite surveillance of the Gulf states and the US military facilities located there,” Zelensky said said on X. “These images subsequently appear in Iran. At the same time, there is a clear connection between the Russian satellite images of these locations and the Iranian attacks – both before the attacks, in preparation for them, and afterwards to assess the damage caused.”
Zelensky’s allegations that Russia is helping Iran attack US troops are not the first. The accusation has been repeatedly discussed in media reports in recent months, and China may also have been involved.
During a hearing on Capitol Hill earlier this week, Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth was asked directly whether Russia and China would help Iran. His answer was a bit unclear, but he said that they would help Iran.
“There’s definitely adversary alignment, attempts to do that, and there’s a lot of ways to prevent that. And the depth and extent of that should remain secret, and it should,” Hegseth said. “But there are ways in which these two countries, at different levels, limit some of the things that Iran does, yes.”
But just a few days later, President Trump contradicted his defense secretary: Saying on Truth Social he didn’t believe they supported Iran. He mentioned both Chinese President Xi Jinping and Russian President Vladimir Putin, saying they had assured him they were not involved.
“That is why, in my opinion, two major countries often spoken of in connection with Iran are not participating,” Trump wrote. “If they did, it would be very bad for them – certainly not in their best interests.”
But Zelensky on Saturday pointed to specific cases in which Russia supported Iran in attacks on bases housing US troops.
“On July 19 and 20 alone, four air bases fell within the sphere of interest of Russian satellites – two in Bahrain, one in Jordan and one in Kuwait,” Zelensky continued. “The purpose is clear. None of us in the world should close our eyes to a very simple fact: Evil is always looking for ways to make things worse and spread further. Russia must be stopped. This war must be stopped. The pressure on the aggressor must work.”
