The European Union (EU) said on Wednesday it had gathered sufficient “evidence” that the “drones” used by Russia in Ukraine were supplied by Iran, and recognized sanctions against Tehran.
“Now that we have gathered enough evidence, we are working on a clear, swift and firm European response,” said Nabila Massrali, spokesman for European diplomatic chief Josep Borrell.
A list of sanctions has been submitted to member states and a decision is expected “in the course of the week”, a diplomatic source quoted by AFP said.
“A broad political consensus has emerged (…) on the need for the EU to react quickly”explained Nabila Massali.
The Ukrainian Air Force said on Wednesday it has destroyed 223 Iranian drones since mid-September.
Ukrainian Foreign Minister Dmytro Kuleba – who was forced to flee to a shelter on Monday because of drone bombing of Kiev – has already asked his European counterpart to punish Iran.
Europeans on Monday sanctioned 11 senior Iranian officials, including the chief of the vice squad, who were involved in cracking down on protests sparked by the death of young Mahsa Amini.
Mahsa Amini, 22, died in hospital on September 16, after being detained by vice squad days earlier for not wearing the Islamic headscarf correctly.
The military offensive launched by Russia in Ukraine on February 24 has already led to more than 13 million people fleeing — more than six million displaced persons and more than 7.6 million to European countries — according to the latest UN data, which this refugee crisis as the worst in Europe since World War II (1939-1945).
The Russian invasion – justified by Russian President Vladimir Putin, with the need to “denazify” and demilitarize Ukraine for Russia’s security – was condemned by the generality of the international community, which has responded by sending arms to Ukraine and impose it on Russia. political and economic sanctions.
The UN presented 6,306 dead civilians and 9,602 wounded as confirmed since the start of the war, stressing that these numbers are far below the actual number.
Source: DN
