LONDON, United Kingdom - The Iranian Army (Artesh) says it is expanding drone bases across the country, with a focus on strengthening surveillance and defense capabilities, the state-run Tasnim news agency reported on Wednesday. 

According to Maj. Gen. Kioumars Heydari, the Commander of the Army's Ground Forces, drone bases are being set up and reinforced in various regions, including border areas. 

The expansion of drone bases has long been Iran's policy to address what it believes to be growing regional security challenges. 

Iran has in recent years introduced major plans to boost its unmanned aerial ability, particularly for surveillance and intelligence gathering purposes as well as precision strikes. 

Heydari noted that the new plan is part of a broader defense strategy for border regions, where he said security threats are more pronounced. 

The commander did not name border areas, but Iranian armed forces have been heavily involved in striking Kurdish opposition militant groups across the border in the Kurdistan Region in the west, as well as Baluchi Sunni insurgents near the Pakistani border in the south-east. 

The plan also coincides with recent US-Iran tensions over Tehran's nuclear program. In response to the Pentagon's reinforcements in the Middle East, Iran has warned that American bases and interests in the region will be within its crosshairs if a military conflict breaks out. 

Iran's drone program has been at the core of its tensions with Western powers, most notably since the Russian invasion of Ukraine in February 2022. Tehran faces accusation of having delivered shipments of its drones and ballistic missiles to the Russian military, with the latter launching them in deadly strikes on Ukrainian targets. 

Iranian authorities, however, have repeatedly denied the charge. 

The growing reliance on drones in Iran's defense programs and its shift toward more asymmetrical warfare tactics also reflect a choice it has had to make in response to decades of international sanctions on its worn-out and nearly grounded military aviation fleet.