Tehran says it “will not be indifferent” if it is proven that Russia used its drones in the conflict in Ukraine.
Tehran Iran – Iran confirmed for the first time that it had sold drones to Russia, but said it happened “months” before the war in Ukraine began.
After an event in Tehran on Saturday, the Minister of Foreign Affairs Hossein Amirabdollahian, in a conversation with reporters, addressed the claims of Western officials that Iranian drones have been delivered to attack Moscow and that surface-to-surface missiles may also be on the way.
Their statements about the missile part are completely wrong and the drone part is correct. Amir Abdollahian said: Months before the war in Ukraine, we gave a limited number of UAVs to Russia.
Iranian officials have previously said on several occasions that Tehran has “defense” cooperation with Russia, but has not provided the Kremlin with weapons “for use in the war in Ukraine.”
On Saturday, Amir Abdollahian emphasized once again that Iran is not a supporter of any of the war parties and is ready to talk with Ukraine.
He said: “We have emphasized to the Ukrainian authorities that if there is evidence that Russia uses Iranian drones in the war in Ukraine, they should provide us with it.”
On Saturday, Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky accused Iranian officials of lying.
“Even with this confession, they are lying,” the Ukrainian leader said in his daily video message.
He said that the number of Iranian combat drones shot down by Ukraine’s air defense is more than the “number” of drones mentioned by Iran.
He added: “The more Tehran lies, the more the international community will understand this terrorist cooperation between the regimes of Russia and Iran.”
Earlier, the Foreign Ministry of Ukraine warned Iran about the “consequences” of supporting Moscow.
Oleg Nikolenko, the spokesman of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, wrote on Facebook: “Tehran should know that the consequences of complicity in the crimes of the Russian Federation’s aggression against Ukraine will be much greater than the benefits of Russia’s support.”
We will not be indifferent
According to this diplomat, an Iranian political and military delegation traveled to an unknown European country two weeks ago to meet with their Ukrainian counterparts, but they refused to attend the “eleventh hour” due to pressure from the United States and Europe. Especially Germany
He said: “They told the Ukrainian side that we want to sanction Iran because of the drone issue, and now you want to participate in a meeting with the Iranians in Europe and drink coffee with them.”
Amir Abdollahian said: “Iran still expects Ukraine to present the documents in the coming days, and if it is proved to us that Russia used Iranian drones in the war in Ukraine, we will not be indifferent to it.”
The United States and the European Union have sanctioned a number of Iranian entities and officials for selling drones to Russia, as Ukrainian officials have repeatedly condemned Tehran and cut diplomatic ties.
Moscow has said the drones it used in the war were Russian-made and has warned the United Nations to investigate the use of drones in Ukraine.
Iran has also condemned Western efforts to use UN Security Council Resolution 2231, which is the basis of the 2015 nuclear deal with world powers, to urge the UN to look into the matter.
