Thousands of AK-47 assault rifles sit on the flight deck of guided-missile destroyer USS The Sullivans (DDG 68) during an inventory process, Jan. 7. U.S. naval forces seized 2,116 AK-47 assault rifles from a fishing vessel transiting along a maritime route from Iran to Yemen. (U.S. Navy photo)
WASHINGTON — US Central Command has transferred approximately 1.1 million rounds of 7.62mm ammunition seized from Iran to Ukraine’s armed forces, the command said in an Oct. 3 statement.
“The [US] government obtained ownership of these munitions on July 20, 2023, through the Department of Justice’s civil forfeiture claims against Iran’s Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC),” according to the statement. “These munitions were originally seized by U.S. Central Command naval forces from the transiting stateless dhow MARWAN 1, Dec. 9, 2022.”
The munitions, the statement adds, were being transferred illegally from Iran’s Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps to Houthis in Yemen in violation of a UN Security Council resolution. CNN first reported news of the transfer to Ukraine.
The US Navy regularly patrols waters in the Middle East and often interdicts illicit weapons being smuggled between countries. But the confirmation that the US will provide those items to Ukraine as aid in its fight against Russia comes at a critical time.
When a government shutdown looked imminent last week, the Pentagon started sending up warnings to lawmakers, saying its cash stockpile marked to purchase weapons for Ukraine would start to run low without further infusions from the Hill.
Now, with Rep. Kevin McCarthy, R-CA, ousted from his role as speaker of the House, further aid is effectively paralyzed until the House is able to elect a new speaker — and even then, it isn’t clear the new speaker will be amenable or have the votes to authorize more funding for Ukraine. The munitions seized during illegal smuggling operations may prove to be one way for the Pentagon to continue helping Ukraine while it waits for Congress to settle its own disputes.
The idea of transferring illicit weapons and ammunition has been percolating in the administration and among defense experts for several months now.
“Beyond filling immediate military necessities, the transfer of these weapons would have other positive knock-on effects. Sending Iran’s weapons to Ukraine for use against Russia could drive a wedge between Moscow and Tehran at a moment when their interests are converging,” Jonathan Lord and Andrea Kendall-Taylor, fellows at the Center for a New American Security, wrote in an op-ed for the Washington Post in February.
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