Universities in the United Kingdom have aided the Iranian regime in developing and improving military weapons including drones and fighter jets, according to a report from the Jewish Chronicle.
Eleven British schools, including the University of Cambridge and Imperial College London, conducted at least 16 studies with connections to the Iranian regime's use of military technology. The technology that U.K. scientists have developed has likely been used in Iranian weapons deployed in Ukraine as Russia leans on the Iranians for military aid.
The development comes after the Biden administration leveled sanctions on Iranian officials for planning assassinations of figures, including some in the United States. The Iranian government also recently unveiled a new missile it says can get through Israel's defenses.
The U.K. projects have helped improve Iranian technology and are sometimes even funded by the Iranian government in Tehran, the Jewish Chronicle reported:
The JC can reveal that in one project researchers in Britain worked to improve drone engines, boosting their altitude, speed and range. It was funded by Tehran.
Another British university worked with Iranian counterparts to test sophisticated new control systems for jet engines, aimed at increasing their "manoeuvrability and response time" in "military applications".
Other UK-based scientists have worked with Iran to research the use of unmanned aerial vehicles (UAVs) as mobile base stations to extend the range of communications systems, on special alloys for military aircraft and coatings to upgrade armour plating.