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Iranian Foreign Minister Hossein Amirabdollahian said a "small
number" of drones had been supplied to Russia a few months
before Moscow's forces invaded Ukraine on Feb. 24.
In Iran's most detailed response to date on the drones,
Amirabdollahian denied Tehran was continuing to supply drones to
Moscow.
"This fuss made by some Western countries that Iran has provided
missiles and drones to Russia to help the war in Ukraine - the
missile part is completely wrong," the official IRNA news agency
quoted him as saying.
"The drone part is true and we provided Russia a small number of
drones months before the Ukraine war," he said.
In recent weeks Ukraine has reported a surge in drone attacks on
civilian infrastructure, notably targeting power stations and
dams, using Iranian-made Shahed-136 drones. Russia denies its
forces have used Iranian drones to attack Ukraine.
Last month, two senior Iranian officials and two Iranian
diplomats told Reuters that Iran had promised to provide Russia
with surface-to-surface missiles, in addition to more drones.
The official IRNA news agency quoted Amirabdollahian as saying
Tehran and Kyiv had agreed to discuss allegations about the use
of Iranian drones in Ukraine two weeks ago but the Ukrainians
did not show up at the agreed meeting.
"We agreed with the foreign minister of Ukraine to provide us
with documents they have that Russia used Iranian drones in
Ukraine," Amirabdollahian said, but the Ukrainian delegation
pulled out of the planned meeting at the last minute.
The Ukrainian Foreign Ministry did not immediately reply to a
written request for comment.
The Iranian foreign minister repeated that Tehran would "not
remain indifferent" if it were proven that Russia had used
Iranian drones in the war against Ukraine.
The European Union last month agreed new sanctions on Iran over
its drone deliveries to Russia, and Britain imposed sanctions on
three Iranian military figures and a defence manufacturer for
supplying Russia with drones to attack civilian and
infrastructure targets in Ukraine.
(Reporting by Gulf newsroom; Additional reporting by Dan
Peleschuk; Editing by Jon Boyle)
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