Iran has agreed to a €500-million contract with Russia for thousands of shoulder-fired air-defense missiles, in a deal that underscores both countries’ willingness to deepen military trade despite intensifying western sanctions and arms-export restrictions, the Financial Times reported.

The secret agreement was signed in Moscow in December and commits Russia to deliver 500 man-portable “Verba” launch units and 2,500 “9M336” missiles over three years. The contract’s timing and scale make it Tehran’s most significant effort to rebuild air defenses degraded during last year’s conflict with Israel, the FT noted. 

The deal was negotiated between Rosoboronexport, Russia’s state arms export agency, and Iran’s Ministry of Defense and Armed Forces Logistics (MODAFL) via its Moscow representative, according to newspaper, which cited leaked documents outlining the terms of the arrangement.

A Moscow-based MODAFL official, Ruhollah Katebi, was identified in the report as a key facilitator. U.S. authorities blacklisted Katebi in 2024 for acting on behalf of MODAFL in his role as the Russian government’s point of contact with Iran’s defense ministry.

Rosoboronexport priced the missiles at €170,000 per unit and the launch mechanisms at €40,000, the FT reported. 

Pavel Luzvin, a senior fellow at the Center for European Policy Analysis, told the newspaper that the deal between Moscow and Tehran signals that Russia has “no interest” in observing U.N. snapback sanctions against Iran. 

Read more at the Financial Times