Sergey Supinsky | Afp | Getty Images UNITED NATIONS – Iran’s UN representative has strongly denied Western claims that Tehran supplied Moscow with a fleet of drones for use in Ukraine. “The Islamic Republic of Iran has taken a clear and consistent position on the situation in Ukraine, which has been formulated since the beginning of the conflict,” Ambassador Amir Saeid Iravani, the Islamic Republic of Iran’s permanent representative to the United Nations, told reporters. . “Iran has consistently supported peace and an immediate end to the conflict in Ukraine,” Iravani said. He added that the allegations are “baseless and baseless” and said the West is mounting a disinformation campaign against his country. Iravani, who did not take questions from reporters, also said the baseless allegations were “disappointing”. The United Nations Security Council at UN headquarters in New York, September 30, 2022. Spencer Platt | News Getty Images | Getty Images Iravani’s comments followed a closed-door UN Security Council meeting where the United States, Britain and France raised the implications of Iranian arms transfers to Russia. The three nations — also members of the original 2015 Iran nuclear deal — say that by providing Russia with drones, Iran violated a UN Security Council resolution. The resolution, known as 2231, prohibits the transfer of “all objects, materials, equipment and goods and technology” from Iran to another nation unless approved in advance by the UN Security Council on a case-by-case basis. Iravani said such transfers are “outside the scope” of the 2015 resolution and therefore Tehran has not breached its commitments. Meanwhile, Kyiv has invited UN experts to inspect the Iranian drones it says it shot down in Ukraine, according to a Reuters report. In recent days, Moscow has carried out several devastating missile and drone strikes against what Ukraine has said are civilian targets, as well as critical infrastructure such as energy facilities. The Kremlin has repeatedly denied using Iranian drones in Ukraine and targeting residential and other areas with high civilian populations. Dmitry Polyansky, Russia’s first deputy permanent representative to the United Nations, told reporters that the drones found in Ukraine were not Iranian but Russian-made. Dmitry Polyansky, First Deputy Permanent Representative of Russia to the United Nations, speaks to reporters at the United Nations headquarters in New York on October 19, 2022. Amanda Macias | CNBC He said images of drones shot down in Ukraine clearly have Russian writing on them. He added, however, that he is not an expert on drones and could not provide further details. After the drone attacks, NATO Secretary General Jens Stoltenberg announced that the 30-member alliance would send drone engagement equipment to Ukraine. Meanwhile, Kyiv has also proposed cutting diplomatic ties with Tehran in light of recent arms transfers and drone attacks.
