Iranian nuclear scientists undertook a second clandestine journey to Russia last year, as reported by the Financial Times, with the United States alleging that the aim was to procure advanced technologies pertinent to nuclear weapon applications.
This visit in November 2024 followed a prior trip in August 2024 and was part of an evolving collaboration between Russian military-affiliated research entities and Iran’s Organization of Defensive Innovation and Research (SPND). The U.S. claims that SPND is connected to Iran’s military and manages research related to nuclear armaments.
These meetings represent the most significant evidence to date of Moscow’s willingness to collaborate with Tehran in areas that could be crucial for nuclear weapons development, according to the Financial Times.
Jim Lamson, a senior fellow at the James Martin Center for Nonproliferation Studies and a former CIA analyst, indicated that there is evidence suggesting Iranian defense-affiliated experts were “pursuing laser technology and expertise that might enable them to validate a nuclear weapon design without the need for an actual nuclear explosive test.”
The Financial Times reported that DamavandTec, a front entity for SPND, facilitated the November 2024 trip for a team of Iranian laser specialists to St. Petersburg, where they engaged with representatives from Laser Systems, a Russian company involved in the development of both civilian laser technologies and classified military projects, which is currently under U.S. sanctions.
Additionally, it was noted that Andrei Savin, a former technical director at Laser Systems and now a senior official at the St. Petersburg-based company Struynye Tekhnologii, visited Tehran in February 2025, conducting meetings with DamavandTec and officials thought to be associated with SPND.
Savin also holds a professorship at the Baltic State Technical University, a key institution for military-technical education in Russia.
In October, the U.S. imposed sanctions on DamavandTec and its CEO, Ali Kalvand, accusing them of attempting to acquire foreign goods “relevant to the development of nuclear explosive devices” on behalf of SPND and facilitating the travel of Iranian nuclear scientists to Russia.
According to Nicole Grajewski from the Carnegie Endowment’s nuclear policy program, these interactions provide “strong evidence that Russia was aiding Iran in research connected to nuclear weaponry, with state-linked Russian institutions supplying dual-use technology and facilitating knowledge transfer.”
She noted that these activities seemed to have approval “from high levels on both the Russian and Iranian sides.”
Both the United States and Israel have accused Iran of striving to create a nuclear weapon, a claim that Tehran rejects while upholding its “non-negotiable” right to develop a civilian nuclear program.
Russia opposes a nuclear-armed Iran but supports Tehran’s right to utilize nuclear technology for peaceful purposes.
In June, Rafael Grossi, the head of the International Atomic Energy Agency, stated that the organization lacks concrete evidence of Iran pursuing a bomb but expressed concerns over Tehran’s lack of transparency.
He added that Iran is enriching uranium to 60%, a threshold that no other nation employs for civil purposes and which is only slightly shy of the 90% enrichment level needed for weapons production.
Israel has maintained that Iran is already engaged in developing the components necessary for detonating a nuclear weapon. Israeli officials alerted Washington of their apprehensions prior to initiating strikes on Iranian nuclear facilities in June. U.S. President Donald Trump subsequently authorized strikes as well.
