FM Claims Russia Pledges Not To Use Iranian Drones In Ukraine Conflict

Iran's Foreign Minister claims Russia has said it will refrain from utilizing Iranian weaponry in the ongoing conflict in Ukraine.

Hossein Amir-Abdollahian made this assertion during a diplomatic visit to South Africa, just three days after he denied any involvement in sending drones to Russia during a visit to Japan.

His announcement follows the contentious discourse surrounding the delivery of Iranian-manufactured drones to Russia, a development that garnered international attention following the Kremlin's invasion of in Ukraine. Although Iran initially denied allegations of providing Shahed suicide drones to Russia, Amir-Abdollahian eventually acknowledged the transfer in November 2022. He claimed that these deliveries occurred in a restricted capacity before the Ukrainian conflict began.

However, Ukrainian authorities have vehemently disputed Iran's narrative and produced a alrge amount of physical evidence showing that Iran continues to deliver hundreds of drones.

During discussions with Japanese officials in Tokyo, Amir-Abdollahian repeated Iran's position that it had not supplied drones for use in the Ukrainian conflict. He also dismissed tangible evidence from Ukraine showing the use of Iranian drones.

The European Union, the United Kingdom, the United States, and Canada, have implemented a series of punitive measures against Iran in response to allegations of drone deployments which purportedly targeted civilian zones and critical infrastructure within Ukraine. Within Iranian political circles, there has been a noticeable surge of criticism surrounding the potential repercussions of these alleged actions.