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The British Defense Secretary said that Vladimir Putin’s “hidden hand” was likely helping Iran respond to Donald Trump’s war, when it emerged that drones linked to Iran hit a base in Iraq where several British troops were located.
They were not injured.
John Healey said Iranian forces’ attacks on targets in the Middle East “bear the hallmarks” of the way Russian forces have operated in the war against Iran. Ukraine.
This includes a change of manner Iran using his drone.
Tehran sold thousands of “Shahed” one-way attack drones to Russia in the early months of President Putin’s massive invasion of Ukraine.
Russia, with Iran’s help, then developed their own version of unmanned aerial vehicles and now the lessons they learned from the fighting in Ukraine appear to be helping Iran in responding to the wave of US and Israeli attacks on Iran.
“No one would be surprised to believe that there is Putin’s hidden hand behind some of Iran’s tactics, and perhaps their capabilities as well,” Healey said, speaking to reporters during a trip to Britain’s Permanent Joint Headquarters (PJHQ) in Northwood, the main base overseeing military operations abroad.
The Defense Minister said the possibility of a relationship with Russia was “partly because the only world leader benefiting from the current high oil prices is Putin”.
John Healey
He was referring to a spike in oil prices after Iran used its control of the Strait of Hormuz off its coast to block one of the world’s most important shipping lanes.
The defense minister said the Russian president “seems to welcome this war more than anyone else.”
Lieutenant General Nick Perry, the head of joint operations who oversees all British military operations around the world, said there was a “definite” connection between Russia and Iran, which have long-standing military ties.
“We’ve obviously seen Iran’s tactics in using their drones learned from the Russians – flying them much lower so they’re more effective,” said Lt. Gen. Perry, speaking to Healey as they looked at a map of the Gulf in a room at military headquarters.
“There is no doubt [the Iranian] tactics have changed,” Lieutenant General Perry said.
He said drones caused the most damage to Iran across the region.
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This included an Iran-linked drone – possibly fired from Lebanon or Iraq – that hit a Royal Air Force base in Cyprus on the second day of the war, and landed near a hanger.
Healey said the components of the device were being investigated to determine whether they included Russian-made components.
“We will notify you of the findings,” he said.
Emergency personnel work at the site of an attack, amid the US-Israeli conflict with Iran, in Tehran, Iran, March 12, 2026. Majid Asgaripou
A second military commander said British troops had shot down two drones fired at a military base in Erbil, northern Iraq, overnight.
“Some people did have an impact on the camp,” the officer told Healey.
He said there were no casualties on the British side.
However, the Defense Minister said there were reports of a number of casualties on the US side, although no one was seriously injured.
