'Putin's Playbook' author Rebekah Koffler and former U.S. State Department Deputy Special Envoy Ellie Cohanim react to reports that Russia is seeking Iranian missiles. Two weeks ago, the co-founder of a think tank affiliated with the Russian Ministry of Defense, Ruslan Pukhov, accidentally admitted on Russian TV what Moscow has been denying for several weeks – Russian forces are using Iranian drones to bombard Ukrainian cities, killing civilians. Implicitly criticizing the Russian authorities for being secretive about the deal, Pukhov compared the topic of Iranian drones with a body part. "There's an a** but you can't use the word," he said, adding "we all know they are Iranian, but the powers that be don't acknowledge it." Drones, in fact, are not the only type of military assistance that the Ayatollahs are handing to Putin as Iran emerges as the principal backer of Putin's savage war on Ukraine.

Fox News national security correspondent Jennifer Griffin provides insight on responding to drone attacks in Ukraine on "America Reports." The Paris-based dissident organization National Council of Resistance of Iran (NCRI) accused the Iranian regime of furnishing Russian strongman Vladimir Putin's army with more than 3,500 drones for his scorched-earth war against Ukraine. According to reports from the social network of the People's Mojahedin Organization of Iran (PMOI/MEK) inside the Islamic Republic, "Iran's UAV [unmanned aerial vehicle] sale contract to Russia includes various offensive drones, including Shahed-129, Mohajer-6 and suicide drones Shahed-136 and Shahed-131." MEK is part of the National Council of Resistance of Iran umbrella organization. The NCRI dossier states, "Tehran has sold more than 3,500 UAVs to Russia. Most of these were made at the factories of the Ministry of Defense, with others produced by the factories of the Iranian Aviation and Space Industries Association (IASIA)."

Russia's President Vladimir Putin has told his Turkish counterpart Recep Tayyip Erdogan that Moscow would consider resuming a deal allowing grain exports from Ukrainian seaports but only after securing "real guarantees" from Kyiv. The phone call between the two leaders on Tuesday came following Russia's suspension of its participation in the deal due to what it said was a drone attack on Moscow's fleet in Crimea that it blamed on Ukraine. Kyiv has not claimed responsibility and has denied using the safe shipping corridor for military purposes. Putin told Erdogan that Russia sought "real guarantees from Kyiv about the strict observance of the Istanbul agreement, in particular about not using the humanitarian corridor for military purposes", according to a statement from the Kremlin. The grain export deal between Russia and Ukraine was brokered by Turkey and the United Nations in July to ease a world food crisis caused in part by Moscow's invasion of Ukraine, a major grain producer, and an earlier blockade of its ports.

In the east Ukrainian city of Bakhmut, 15 kilometres (nine miles) from the positions held by Russian forces, an artillery unit waits for the signal. The four soldiers duck and put their hands over their ears. "According to the coordinates we received, the target is infantry," says Oleksandr, 37, between two radioed orders. Around 30 seconds later, the 50 kilo (110-pound) "fragmentation" shell, pinched from the Russians after their retreat from a nearby town, will explode above the position held by Moscow's troops, showering them with its payload. A Ukrainian drone supports the operation "in real time", monitoring the effectiveness of the strike from the old Soviet D-20 cannon in order to better calibrate the next one.

Ukraine has developed drones that are capable of finding targets autonomously, a Ukrainian military leader has claimed, raising the prospect that the ongoing Russia-Ukraine war could see the first confirmed use of'killer robots' in armed conflict. Ukrainian Lieutenant Colonel Yaroslav Honchar gave details in an interview with Ukrainian news agency UNIAN on 13th October. Honchar is co-founder of Aerorozvidka ("Aerial Intelligence"), a team of around a thousand volunteer drone enthusiasts and technologists set up in 2014 to develop and use drones and other technology. Honchar says their drones already fly scout missions autonomously and mentions the possibility of automated strikes, but did not say such strikes had been carried out. Aerorozvidka declined to comment on the issue when asked by New Scientist.

KYIV – Russian President Vladimir Putin said Russian strikes on Ukrainian infrastructure and a decision to freeze participation in a Black Sea grain export program were responses to a drone attack on Moscow's fleet in Crimea that he blamed on Ukraine. Putin told reporters on Monday that Ukrainian drones had used the same marine corridors that grain ships transited under the U.N.-brokered deal. This could be due to a conflict with your ad-blocking or security software. Please add japantimes.co.jp and piano.io to your list of allowed sites. If this does not resolve the issue or you are unable to add the domains to your allowlist, please see this support page.

Russia's recent missile and drone strikes on Ukraine have highlighted three war developments. Firstly, Iran appears to be playing a significant role in arming Russia. And finally, this new level of intensity means Ukraine is going to need help from the West if this new influx of missiles is to be stopped. In recent weeks, despite Iranian and Russian denials, images of the Shahed-136 drones, their distinctive delta wings silhouetted against the sky, have circulated around the global media. In Kyiv, tower block residents watched in horror as the drones flew below their windows, the lawnmower-like whine of their engines clearly heard, as they purposefully made their way to intended targets.

Turkey says it is determined that Ukraine continues its food exports despite Russia announcing its withdrawal from a UN-brokered grain deal, a move that has heightened concerns for nations desperate for food assistance. Russia pulled out of the deal on Saturday after what it said was a major Ukrainian drone attack on its naval fleet in annexed Crimea. Despite Moscow's decision, cargo ships set sail carrying 354,500 tonnes of grain, the most dispatched in one day since the programme began in August. Turkey, which helped broker the agreement, remained committed to the deal. "Even if Russia behaves hesitantly because it didn't receive the same benefits, we will continue decisively our efforts to serve humanity," President Recep Tayyip Erdogan said.

Ukrainian officials said on Monday that Russian strikes hit Ukraine's critical infrastructure in Kyiv, Kharkiv and other cities. The strikes appeared to be retaliation for what Moscow alleged was Ukraine's attack over the weekend on Russia's Black Sea Fleet. Loud explosions were heard across the Ukrainian capital of Kyiv early Monday morning. Some residents received text messages from the emergency services about the threat of a missile attack. Air raid sirens were heard for three straight hours.

Several blasts shook Kyiv on Monday, days after Russia blamed Ukraine for drone attacks on its Crimea fleet in the Black Sea. At least five explosions were heard in the Ukrainian capital between 8:00 am (0600 GMT) and 8:20 am, according to AFP journalists. Kyiv had already been hit on October 10 and 17 by drones. After Monday's blasts, mayor Vitali Klitschko said in a Telegram message: "An area of Kyiv is without electricity and certain areas without water following Russian strikes." Monday's attack on the Ukrainian capital comes after Russia pulled out of a landmark agreement that allowed vital grain shipments via a maritime safety corridor.