Russia is providing Iran with targeting information to attack American forces in the Middle East, the first indication that another major US adversary is participating — even indirectly — in the war, according to three officials familiar with the intelligence.
The assistance, which has not been previously reported, signaled that the rapidly expanding conflict now features one of America’s chief nuclear-armed competitors with exquisite intelligence capabilities.
Since the war began last Saturday, Russia has passed Iran the locations of US military assets, including warships and aircraft, said the three officials, who spoke on the condition of anonymity because of the matter’s sensitivity.
“It does seem like it’s a pretty comprehensive effort,” one of the people said.
Reached by The Washington Post on Friday, Dmitry Peskov, the Kremlin spokesman, declined to comment on the intelligence findings.
Moscow has called for an end to the war, which it labeled an “unprovoked act of armed aggression.”
The extent of Russia’s targeting assistance to Iran was not entirely clear. The Iranian military’s own ability to locate US forces has been degraded less than a week into the fighting, the officials said.
“The Iranian regime is being absolutely crushed,” said a White House spokeswoman, Anna Kelly, without commenting on any Russian aid to Iran. “Their ballistic missile retaliation is decreasing every day, their navy is being wiped out, their production capacity is being demolished, and proxies are hardly putting up a fight.”
Two of the officials familiar with Russia’s support for Iran said that China did not appear to be aiding Iran’s defense, despite close ties between the two countries.
In a statement, the Chinese Embassy in Washington referred to Beijing’s diplomatic efforts to engage with partners in the region since the war began and said that the conflict should be “immediately ceased.”
Oil Hits $90 Per Barrel
Brent, the international oil benchmark, broke $90 per barrel on Friday as it jumped more than six percent to its highest level since April 2024.
The move in prices came amid growing fears that the Iran war could lead to long-term energy supply issues. A report from The Wall Street Journal said that Kuwait had “begun cutting production at some oil fields after running out of room to store its bottled-up crude.”
Stocks also sharply dropped. At the opening bell, the S&P 500 fell more than 1.6 percent. The Dow Jones Industrial Average slid 900 points and the Nasdaq Composite tumbled 1.4 percent.
Markets also fell after a grim jobs report showed the economy shed 92,000 jobs in February and included downward revisions to the last two jobs reports.
“The pace of job gains over the last few months is still dramatically slower than it was in 2024 and much of 2025,” the Head of Investment Strategy at J.P. Morgan Wealth Management, Elyse Ausenbaugh said.
“Add higher oil prices given conflict in the Middle East and renewed tariff uncertainty to the convoluted jobs market story, and you have a tricky, stagflationary mix of risks in the backdrop for the Fed.”
Currently, hundreds of ships containing oil and LNG are stuck off the coast of Iran, unable to pass through the Strait of Hormuz to the global market as tensions continue rising between the U.S., Israel, Iran and neighboring countries.
Iraq has also cut production by 1.5 million barrels per day, JPMorgan’s analysts said, adding that another four million barrels per day overall could be disrupted by the end of next week if the situation continues.
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