Iran slams West over ‘uncontrolled’ arms shipments to Ukraine
"Western military assistance to Ukraine is only prolonging its conflict with Russia, the Iranian foreign minister claimed on Thursday. Iran has repeatedly voiced a stance of “active neutrality” on the crisis.
Speaking with his Finnish counterpart by phone, Hossein Amirabdollahian stressed that Tehran is “opposed to the continuation of war, including in Ukraine.”
Iran believes that “the uncontrolled shipment of US and European arms to Ukraine has further complicated the situation” in the country, the diplomat told Pekka Haavisto, according to a readout of the call released by the Iranian Foreign Ministry.
In recent months, Kiev and Western countries have accused Iran of providing Russia with weaponry, including military drones. Tehran has on numerous occasions said it is not involved in the hostilities in any way and has not supplied Moscow with drones to be used on the battlefield.
✓ “Iran has not sent and nor will it send any weapons to Russia to use in the Ukraine war, because Iranian officials believe that there should be a political solution to that crisis”, Amirabdollahian said in October.
In early November, however, the minister acknowledged that Iran had sent a “small number” of drones to Russia, but explained that the shipment took place several months before large-scale fighting in Ukraine broke out.
The same month, the Ukrainian military said the alleged Iranian drones contained mostly US-made components, and elements from a number of other countries, including Ukraine itself. Kiev also said it was “determining how it could have gotten there.”
Meanwhile, Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov has said all weapons used by Russian troops in Ukraine come from domestic stockpiles.
✓ Moscow has repeatedly warned the West against pumping Kiev with weapons, arguing that this would only prolong the hostilities."
"The Biden administration has accused Russian aerospace forces and the defense ministry of purchasing UAVs from Tehran
The United States has announced it will impose sanctions on three Russian organizations over the alleged purchase of Iranian drones for Moscow’s ongoing military offensive in Ukraine.
During a White House briefing on Friday, US National Security Council spokesman John Kirby said sanctions would be introduced against entities “at the forefront in terms of acquiring and using Iranian drones.” He named the Russian Aerospace Forces and the 924th State Center for Unmanned Aviation of the Russian Defense Ministry as two of the organizations, but did not name the third.
Washington claims Moscow has been illegally acquiring Iranian weapons and drones – in violation of sanctions imposed on Tehran – and presenting them as having been produced in Russia. Kirby further alleged that Russia and Iran were in the process of establishing a joint production facility for unmanned aerial vehicles.
Kiev has also insisted that the drones that are striking targets across Ukraine are Iranian and contain mostly US-made components and elements from a number of other countries, including Ukraine itself.
Both Moscow and Tehran have denied the allegations. Iranian Foreign Minister Hossein Amir-Abdollahian said in October that his country had “not sent, nor will it send, any weapons to Russia to use in the Ukrainian war,” explaining that Irainian officials believe the conflict should be resolved peacefully.
He admitted, however, that Iran did at one point supply drones to Russia, but clarified that this was done in “small quantities” and “several months” before the conflict in Ukraine began.
Amir-Abdollahian has also blasted the West for pumping Kiev with weapons, which he claimed only served to prolong the conflict.
Moscow, meanwhile, has repeatedly claimed that all the weapons used by Russian troops in Ukraine come from domestic stockpiles and has also condemned the US and its allies, accusing them of fueling the conflict by supplying excessive amounts of military aid to Kiev."
No comments:
Post a Comment