Internal Russian defense industry documents reveal that Moscow secretly bolstered Iran's missile arsenal before the current conflict, supplying components for 90 precision-guided missile launchers. This information comes from records obtained by the Ukrainian defense intelligence research group Dallas Analytics.
The documents detail a contract, identified as "K-10," for the launchers, with shipments within the Russian production chain scheduled from late 2024 through December 2025. Other internal Russian documents explicitly link "K-10" to Iran, including a supply request for equipment for a Yak-130 aircraft listed with "'K10' Iran" as the consignee. Tail numbers of Iranian Yak-130 aircraft that entered service in September 2023 have been found to match those listed for K-10 in Russian factory records.
The APU-L launchers are designed to carry Russia's LMUR missile, also known as Product 305 or Kh-39, a precision-guided munition that can be operator-guided in flight. Publicly, Iran has announced plans to acquire Russian Mi-28 attack helicopters, which are capable of carrying such weapons, with export-variant Mi-28NE helicopters photographed in Iran in January 2026.
The findings contradict President Donald Trump's repeated assertions that Russia was not assisting Iran. U.S. intelligence has previously assessed that Russia provided Iran with information on American military assets, and more recently, satellite imagery and weapons components. However, administration officials have stated that such support has not materially affected U.S. military operations.
Dallas Analytics stated that while the documents do not definitively confirm the completed launchers reached Iran, the contract itself serves as strong proof of the transfer. The State Department has recently sanctioned a Russia-based individual involved in alleged efforts to help Iran procure Chinese-made man-portable air-defense systems, continuing U.S. efforts to disrupt Iran's foreign weapons procurement.