Iran has purchased a large number of ** from Russia, including Mi-8*** Su-35 fighter jets and Yak-130 advanced trainer aircraft, which is the result of previous rumors that have been verified. Iran has a good development in missiles and drones, and even sent drones to Russia for use in the military confrontation between Russia and Ukraine.
Iran's aviation power is relatively weak in comparison, and although Iran is also producing its own fighters, it is actually only an improved version of the American Tiger fighter, and cannot be regarded as a truly advanced fighter. As a result, Iran had to buy fighter jets from Russia in order to boost its air power.
The Yak-130 is an advanced trainer that can be used to train pilots in the Air Force and Navy, including some important command staff and carrier-based aircraft pilots. The Mi-8 is a multi-purpose *** that can be used for a variety of military tasks, such as transportation, support, reconnaissance, etc.
The Su-35 fighter is the main fighter of the Iranian Air Force, and it is also the model that Iran has always wanted to introduce. The Su-35 fighter has the characteristics of supersonic cruise, over-the-horizon combat, and super-maneuverability, and is a very advanced fourth-generation and a half-generation fighter. Once Iran is equipped with Su-35 fighters, it can greatly improve its air deterrence and combat capabilities.
Iran does not want to go to war with the United States or Israel at the moment, and is not directly involved in the outbreak of a serious conflict between Palestine and Israel. This is because Iran knows that it still has a big technological gap compared to the United States or Israel. So why doesn't Iran buy Chinese fighters? Chinese fighters are no worse than Russian ones in many aspects, and even have advantages in some technologies, such as avionics systems, ** systems, etc. But Iran believes it has a stronger alliance with Russia, so it prefers military cooperation with Russia.
Of course, there is also some military cooperation between Iran and China, such as in missiles and drones. Iran is also stepping up military cooperation with Russia, especially on warplanes. Russian warplanes have been rigorously tested in the Russia-Ukraine conflict, proving their performance and reliability. Iran also sent its own drones to the Russian-Ukrainian battlefield to demonstrate its drone technology. All these have allowed Iran and Russia to have more in-depth cooperation in terms of equipment.
Relations between Iran and the United States have always been bad, and Iran needs to strengthen its own defense capabilities. Iran buys ** from Russia, and at the same time hopes to receive Russian support, including strategic support, to resist US pressure. So cooperation between Iran and Russia is not only military, but also political. The purchase of warplanes from Russia is a realistic need for Iran.
However, the Russian-Ukrainian conflict continues, and Russia can still sell its own fighters to Iran, which also shows that Russia's first-class equipment production capacity has not been affected by the Russian-Ukrainian conflict.