EU agrees on new sanctions over Iranian drones in Ukraine
Al JazeeraOct 20, 2022
On Thursday, European Union countries imposed sanctions on Iran over Iranian-made drones allegedly supplied to Russia and used in attacks against Ukraine.
The presidency of the EU — which rotates between member states and is currently held by the Czech Republic — confirmed the sanctions in a tweet. Consequently, the EU has decided to freeze the assets of three Iranian officials and Shahed Aviation Industries for drone deliveries.
There is ample evidence that Iran is supplying Russia with drones despite both countries' denials. These sanctions are a demonstration that Iran's support for Russia's illegitimate invasion of Ukraine — and violation of international norms — will be met with firm consequences.
While Iran has defensive agreements with Russia, claims that it's actively taking part in the conflict by providing drones are baseless. Besides, they're deeply hypocritical given that the US and its European allies have been fanning the flames of the conflict by supplying Ukraine with millions of dollars of advanced weaponry.
There is a 50% chance that Iran will possess a nuclear weapon before 2030, according to the Metaculus prediction community.