- The engine for drones that Russia is using in Ukraine is based on stolen technology, experts said.
- Conflict Armament Research said the German technology was stolen by Iran in 2006.
- Russia has used the Iranian-made drones to destroy buildings and kill civilians in Ukraine.
Drones manufactured by Iran and used by Russia in its invasion of Ukraine have at their core German technology that was stolen by Iran 17 years ago, according to weapons experts.
UK-based group Conflict Armament Research (CAR), which tracks weapon supplies around the world, said in a report this month that Iran's Shahed-136 drones use engines based on technology stolen from Germany in 2006.
Russia has used the drones to strike targets across Ukraine, including in the capital, Kyiv, as well as power infrastructure and apartment buildings. Civilians have been killed in the process.
CAR said that it had examined engines of drones recovered in Ukraine, and found markings belonging to Iranian company Mado. It said that this proves for the first time that Mado is "indeed the producer of engines" found in Shahed-136 drones used against Ukraine.
The group then connected the Mado engines to German technology stolen in 2006.
It said that the company's MD-500 engine is "probably a copy" of a German engine that was stolen in 2006, the Limbach L-550.
It also said that commentators believe that other Mado models looked like they are copies of European technology.
CAR said that the serial numbers on parts of the drone engines found in Ukraine were erased, or new serial numbers applied — something that would help to hide their origin.
"These modifications have prevented investigators from identifying the acquisition networks facilitating the international supply of key components into Iran," it said.
CAR's findings were first reported by CNN.
Russia has been using Iran-made drones in Ukraine for months.
Iran initially denied any involvement, and then admitted that its drones were being used by Russia — but only ones that it sent before Russia launched its invasion of Ukraine in February 2022.
Western governments have disputed this claim, with the US saying that Iran has also sent drone operators to Russia to train its forces.
Russia turned to Iran for arms after its own ability to manufacture weapons became limited.
Pentagon Press Secretary Air Force Brig. Gen. Pat Ryder said in November that Iran had given Russia hundreds of drones and Russia was relying on Iran for weapons for Ukraine because it had become so internationally isolated.
The US and EU have sanctioned Iranian companies and individuals in response to the drone supply.
Yousaf Aboutalebi, Mado's CEO, has been under US sanctions since before the invasion of Ukraine began, and was added to the UK's sanctions list in December 2022.