WASHINGTON - Six days into Operation Epic Fury, former US Ambassador Richard Kauzlarich told Kyiv Post that reported Russian intelligence support for Tehran could mark a serious escalation, especially if it contributes to attacks on US personnel or facilities in the region.
Kauzlarich, a former US ambassador and now a visiting professor at George Mason University, said he was not surprised by reports that Moscow may be helping Iran with targeting intelligence.
“[Russian President Vladimir] Putin would see providing information to Iran as just a natural reaction,” Kauzlarich said. “If [the US] can do it to Ukraine, [Russia] can do it to Iran.”
Still, he said such cooperation could affect US policy toward Russia.
Kauzlarich said that in the past, Washington would have quickly confronted Moscow through diplomatic channels and demanded an end to such activity.
Kauzlarich warned that the issue could become much more serious if Russian-provided intelligence were linked to successful Iranian attacks on US targets.
“If this leads to the deaths of American service people or destruction of American embassies, I think we have a real problem in our relationship with Russia,” he said.
The White House, however, has so far sought to play down the immediate significance of the reports. Asked about Russia apparently providing intelligence to Iran, Press Secretary Karoline Leavitt said US intelligence agencies were monitoring the matter, but argued it had not changed the military course of the campaign.
“What I meant... is that it clearly is not making a difference with respect to the military operations in Iran because we are completely decimating them,” Leavitt said.
She said the administration believes the operation’s objectives will take “about four to six weeks” and argued that the first six days had already produced major gains. According to Leavitt, the US had sunk nearly 30 Iranian vessels, rendered Iran’s navy “combat ineffective,” and reduced retaliatory Iranian ballistic missile strikes by roughly 90%.
Leavitt also said the operation was “well on [the] way” to achieving its goals, including weakening Iran’s military capabilities, its proxy network, and its ability to threaten US forces and bases in the region.
Her comments came as the Kremlin published a readout of a phone call between Putin and Iranian President Masoud Pezeshkian. According to the Kremlin, Putin expressed condolences over the killing of Iran’s supreme leader and other Iranian political and military figures, while also calling for an immediate halt to hostilities and a return to diplomacy.
Kauzlarich said he could not say whether the Putin-Pezeshkian call included any discussion of intelligence cooperation, though he suggested it could point to broader Russian support for Iran. “We’ll have to see what happens over time,” he said.
Analysts say intelligence sharing may be the most practical support Russia can offer Iran right now.
Glen Howard, president of the Saratoga Foundation, told RFE/RL that Moscow’s heavy battlefield losses in Ukraine have limited its ability to transfer major weapons systems to Tehran.
“Because of heavy equipment losses in the Ukraine war, Moscow currently faces its own hardware shortages and cannot fill the void Iran needs by transferring radar or aircraft,” Howard said. “That means the most immediate and valuable asset Moscow can offer Iran right now is the sharing of timely, actionable intelligence.”