PUBLISHED on August 14, 2025, 11:51 AM EDT – Key Points and Summary – Russia is dramatically scaling up its domestic production of Iranian-designed Shahed drones to manufacture 79,000 units, according to Ukrainian intelligence.
-At a massive factory in Alabuga, Russia, it is already producing over 5,500 drones per month.
-This move has created a significant “rift” with Tehran, which feels “marginalized” after losing control over its technology and receiving little in return for its support of Moscow’s war effort.
-As Russia aims for self-sufficiency, Ukraine is actively targeting these critical production facilities to halt the drone surge.
Russia Plans to Build 79,000 ‘Iranian’ Drones. There’s Just One Problem
Russia has a deal with Iran to manufacture Iran-designed ‘Kamikaze’ Shahed drones in Russia, an arrangement that has begun to lead to tensions between Moscow and Tehran.
Now, there’s a report that Russia has big ambitions for those drones.
According to the Kyiv Independent, which cited an interview this week with the Ukrainian media outlet Suspilne, Vadym Skibitskyi, deputy head of Ukraine’s military intelligence (HUR), says that Russia “plans to produce 79,000 Shahed-type drones.”
“Today, the glider is theirs, and the internal combustion engine they install is also theirs. The navigation system, with the exception of chips and microelectronics, is Russian-made,” Skibitskyi said in the interview.
A major plant for building the weapons is in Russia’s Tatarstan region, a plant that Ukraine has been targeting with attacks.
“Our task here is to prevent this from happening, to prevent such an increase. And, if possible, to destroy the production facilities themselves,” Skibitskyi said in the interview.
How Russia Built the Factory
CNN reported this week that Russia and Iran had reached a $1.75 billion deal in 2023 to build the facility, which CNN reported is now “pumping out more than 5,500 units per month.”
The Russian drone operation has gotten so large, the CNN report stated, that it’s sparked tensions between Russia and Iran, already less-than-great, thanks to Iran’s belief that Russia could have done more to help during Iran’s war with Israel earlier this summer.
“A Western intelligence source says the expansion and the complete Russian integration of the Shahed-136, have effectively marginalized Iran, revealing a rift between Moscow and Tehran,” CNN reported this week about the
“They say Tehran has been growing increasingly impatient with the little return it’s received from Russia, despite having supported Moscow’s war effort with not just drones, but missiles and other assets.”
A big problem, per the CNN report, is that Iran appears to have lost control over a weapon that it developed itself.
And it even raised the possibility that Russia could end up making so many of the drones that they sell them back to Tehran.
“This evolution marks a gradual loss of control for Iran over the final product, which is now largely manufactured locally and independently,” an intelligence source told CNN this week. Russia’s goal with the drones was “to fully master the production cycle and free itself from future negotiations with Tehran.”
Doubling Down on Kamikaze Drones from Iran
Back in April, before the Israel/Iran war, Matthew Bint and Fabian Hinz wrote for IISS about Russia having “doubled down” on the use of the Shahed drone.
“In 2022, Iran began supplying Shahed 131 and Shahed 136 OWA-UAVs for Russian use in the war in Ukraine. Shortly thereafter, Iran initiated a large-scale technology transfer programme to facilitate the production of these systems in Russia. Domestically manufactured variants of the Shahed 136, designated Geran-2, remain the cornerstone of Russia’s deep-strike OWA-UAV campaign,” that report said.
The report also referenced the manufacturing facility.
“Russia’s commitment to the use of long-range OWA-UAVs is not only reflected by the increasing number of systems but also by the expansion of its production capacity,” that report said. “Ukrainian sources have previously stated that Russia produced more than 6,000 OWA-UAVs in 2024 and aims to increase these numbers through 2025. This claim is supported by satellite imagery showing the development of infrastructure for Shahed production.”
A June report, meanwhile, stated that Russia had given another ally, Shahed production capability: North Korea. That June story cited Ukraine’s intelligence chief, Lt. Gen. Kyrylo Budanov.
About the Author: Stephen Silver
Stephen Silver is an award-winning journalist, essayist, and film critic, and contributor to the Philadelphia Inquirer, the Jewish Telegraphic Agency, Broad Street Review, and Splice Today. The co-founder of the Philadelphia Film Critics Circle, Stephen lives in suburban Philadelphia with his wife and two sons. For over a decade, Stephen has authored thousands of articles that focus on politics, national security, technology, and the economy. Follow him on X (formerly Twitter) at @StephenSilver, and subscribe to his Substack newsletter.
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