The US says it agrees with Western allies that Iran’s supply of explosive drones to Russia is a violation of UN sanctions.
Kyiv was hit on Monday by a so-called “kamikaze” drone, which was shot down by Russia but is believed to be Iranian-made.
The US State Department said the US agrees with the French and British assessment that drones violate UN Security Council Resolution 2231.
The resolution, which is tied to the Iran nuclear deal, bans the transfer of certain military technologies to Iran.
Ukraine has identified drones – or unmanned aerial vehicles (UAVs) – as Iranian Shahid 136 weapons. They are called kamikaze drones after the Japanese fighter pilots who flew suicide missions in World War II.
“We believe that these UAVs that were transferred from Iran to Russia and used by Russia in Ukraine are among the weapons that will continue to be banned under 2231,” said the State Department’s Vedant Patel.
Iran denies supplying them to Russia, but Mr. Patel said the United States “publicly exposed that Russia has acquired drones from Iran, that Russia has imported hundreds of Iranian UAVs of various types.” It was part of the plan.”
He added that there was “extensive evidence” of their use by Russia in Ukraine.
Ukraine’s Kyiv, Dnipro and Sumy regions suffered severe infrastructure damage on Monday, with hundreds of towns and villages without power, the Kiev government said.
At least eight people were killed – four in Kyiv and four in Sumy. The US said it would “hold [Russia] accountable for its war crimes.”
National Police officers shooting down an Iranian drone.
— Anton Gerashchenko (@Gerashchenko_en) October 17, 2022
WE NEED AIR DEFENSE! pic.twitter.com/AvdviH6RhE
Mr Patel said the deepening alliance between Russia and Iran should be seen as a threat by the whole world. Russia and Iran have provided key military support to President Bashar al-Assad in the Syrian civil war.
“Anyone who is doing business with Iran, which may have anything to do with the development of UAVs or ballistic missiles or the flow of weapons from Iran to Russia, should be very careful and do their due diligence. The U.S. sanctions. will not hesitate to impose,” warned Mr. Patel
Monday’s attack came a week after Russia fired dozens of missiles at Kyiv and other Ukrainian cities, many of them targeting energy infrastructure. Western analysts believe that the Iranian arsenal is helping Russia continue its long-range attacks despite a lack of accurate missiles.
EU foreign policy chief Josep Borrell says the EU is also “gathering evidence” about Iranian drones and is ready to act – signaling a possible tightening of sanctions.
Negotiations to restore the 2015 nuclear deal with Iran are currently deadlocked. Under the deal with Western powers, Iran agreed to limit its sensitive nuclear activities and allow international inspectors in exchange for lifting economic sanctions.
