Macron Warns Iran's President On Drone Deliveries To Russia

French President Emmanuel Macron warned Iranian counterpart Ebrahim Raisi on Saturday about the consequences of delivering drones to Russia, Macron's office announced.

In a phone call, Macron urged Iran to "immediately cease" the support it is giving Russia in the war against Ukraine.

Iran has supplied hundreds of its kamikaze Shahed drones to Russia that have been used against military and civilian targets since October last year. The United States and its main NATO allies have repeatedly warned Tehran to stop its close military cooperation with Moscow.

Macron also expressed concerns about the trajectory of the Iranian nuclear program, the statement said.

Britain, France, Germany, the United States and Ukraine say the supply of Iranian-made drones to Russia violates a 2015 UN Security Council resolution enshrining the Iran nuclear deal.

Washington has also said that the resumption of nuclear talks with Tehran that can lead to lifting of economic sanctions partly depends on Iran seizing its weapons supplies to Russia.

The White House said on Friday that Russia appeared to be deepening its defense cooperation with Iran and had received hundreds of one-way attack drones that it is using to strike Ukraine.

The drones serve to supplement Russia’s missile inventory that has been reduced as it attacked civilian infrastructure for months. The cheap drones also are a weapon that can exhaust Ukraine’s air defense missiles, as they are often launched in dozens.

With reporting by Reuters