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Putin Would Flip Out: Could America Give Ukraine Seized Arms from Iran?

AK-47. Image Credit: Creative Commons.

Over the past few years, the United States Navy and partner forces have intercepted a number of small boats that were attempting to illegally smuggle small arms, ammunition, and other ordnance from Iran to Yemen.

In just the past four raids conducted in recent months, more than 5,000 weapons including assault rifles and light machine guns, 1.6 million rounds of ammunition, and more than 20 anti-tank guided missiles have been seized.

The U.S. Navy and partners targeted boats sailing along routes that are historically used to traffic arms from Iran to the Houthi rebels, which have been fighting a brutal civil war against Yemen’s internationally recognized government. Middle Eastern experts have described the conflict as a proxy war fought between regional foes Iran and Saudi Arabia, which supports the Yemeni government.

Big Seizures 

In a December 1, 2022 raid more than one million rounds of 7.62x54mmR ammunition, 25,000 rounds of 12.7x99mm ammunition, and nearly 7,000 proximity fuses for 122mm artillery rockets were discovered on a small craft in the Gulf of Oman. Another seizure on January 6 included more than 2,000 AK-47 style assault rifles – which included a mix of Chinese 7.62x39mm Type 56-1 and Iranian-produced clones of the AK.

French naval forces also captured more than 3,000 assault rifles and other small arms, along with some 578,000 rounds of ammunition last month. A number of 7.62x54mmR PK-series machine guns were also among the weapons found in that raid, The War Zone reported.

Now Bound for Ukraine?

The United States Central Command (CENTCOM) is now considering sending this haul of weapons and ordnance that was bound for Iranian-backed fighters instead to Ukraine, The Wall Street Journal first reported. Deliberations are ongoing, and U.S. military officials initially considered such an option late last year.

The challenge for the Biden administration will be finding a legal justification for taking weapons from one conflict and transferring them to another. Current United Nations (UN) arms embargoes require the U.S. and its allies to destroy, store or otherwise dispose of any seized weapons.

Biden administration lawyers are reportedly looking into whether the UN resolution allows for any possibility for the weapons to be transferred to Ukraine, including via a third party. Such a move would also allow the United States, which remains a key Ukrainian ally, to hit back at Tehran, which has been supplying Moscow with drones that have targeted Ukrainian cities and other civilian infrastructure.

NATO members and other partner nations have already sent billions of dollars in military aid, but Ukraine has reportedly been running low on ordnance. The small arms and ammunition seized by the U.S. and France would be quite welcome as Russia has launched a new offensive. 

Kyiv, which is now preparing for its own counteroffensive, can use every weapon it can get to stop the Kremlin’s latest attack while it waits for more advanced hardware, including tanks that could be used to drive back Russia later this spring.

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Author Experience and Expertise:

A Senior Editor for 19FortyFive, Peter Suciu is a Michigan-based writer. He has contributed to more than four dozen magazines, newspapers, and websites with over 3,200 published pieces over a twenty-year career in journalism. He regularly writes about military hardware, firearms history, cybersecurity, politics, and international affairs. Peter is also a Contributing Writer for Forbes and Clearance Jobs. You can follow him on Twitter: @PeterSuciu.

Written By

Expert Biography: A Senior Editor for 1945, Peter Suciu is a Michigan-based writer who has contributed to more than four dozen magazines, newspapers, and websites with over 3,000 published pieces over a twenty-year career in journalism. He regularly writes about military hardware, firearms history, cybersecurity, and international affairs. Peter is also a Contributing Writer for Forbes. You can follow him on Twitter: @PeterSuciu.

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