This is what Putin’s latest weapon can do

Russia has apparently received short-range missiles from Iran. They could soon be deployed. Why does Putin need the Iranian Fath-360 missiles?

For months, there had been speculation in partly contradictory reports about the delivery of Iranian short-range missiles to Russia. Now the US government has confirmed that such a delivery had taken place – despite warnings from the West. “Russia has now received deliveries of these ballistic missiles and will probably use them in Ukraine against the Ukrainian population within a matter of weeks,” said US Secretary of State Antony Blinken on Tuesday in London.

Blinken announced new sanctions against Iran, and Europe also reacted. Measures would be taken “immediately” to override bilateral air transport agreements with Iran, said a joint statement by the foreign ministers of Germany, France and Great Britain.

According to US Secretary of State Blinken, the Iranian weapons shipment consists of Fath-360 missiles. The British newspaper “The Times” previously reported, citing Ukrainian intelligence sources, that Iran delivered more than 200 Fath-360 missiles to Russia on September 4 via a port on the Caspian Sea. Satellite images are said to show the ship that transported the missiles in the southern Russian port of Olya.

The Fath-360 is a short-range ballistic missile with a 150-kilogram warhead. Like all ballistic missiles, it is propelled into the atmosphere by rocket propulsion and then plunges down in a high arc towards its target. Unlike cruise missiles, which are guided throughout the flight, the Fath-360 is only guided in the first phases after launch, which makes it less precise. Its advantage, however, is the enormous speed at which it races towards its target – more than 3,200 kilometers per hour.

At 120 kilometers, the range of the Fath-360 is comparatively short. Experts assume that Russia will use these missiles to attack military targets located near the front line. In addition, the Iranian arms delivery allows Russia to save its more expensive and longer-range missiles such as the Iskander for more distant targets in Ukraine. The Iskander missile can reach targets up to 500 kilometers away.

But the Fath-360 is not only targeting military targets in Ukraine. Cities such as Kharkiv and Sumy, which are only 30 kilometers from the Russian border, could also be easily reached. “These missiles have a very short reaction time,” explains military expert Fabian Hinz from the International Institute for Strategic Studies in Berlin to the “Kyiv Independent”. “If you have the launcher ready on site and a high-value target appears on a reconnaissance image, you can react very, very quickly, much faster than with drones,” says Hinz.

The delivery of the Fath-360 significantly increases the challenges facing Ukraine’s defense. Due to the high speed of ballistic missiles, only the most advanced air defense systems are capable of intercepting them. One of these systems is the US Patriot system, which Ukraine already has in service.

According to military expert Hinz, Iran has accepted the Western sanctions because the country urgently needs money and military technology. “The Iranian regime is in a difficult financial situation and can obtain considerable sums through these deals,” explained Hinz.

Iran has already demanded a high price for previous arms transfers, such as the Shahed drones. “It is likely that considerable sums are involved here too,” Hinz continued. In terms of military technology, Iran has long sought to acquire Su-35 attack helicopters and S-400 air defense systems from Russia, but has not yet received any. “So there is a lot that Iran can gain,” Hinz added.

Nasser Kanaani, Iran’s foreign ministry spokesman, had rejected reports of a missile delivery to Russia. It was regrettable that “some parties who are themselves part of the war” were “making accusations against the Islamic Republic of Iran with political goals,” he said. Iran had already delivered so-called kamikaze drones to Russia in the past. Tehran also denies this.