The announcement late Friday came after Ukraine said it shot down four Iranian-made “kamikaze” unmanned aerial vehicles, prompting President Volodymyr Zelenskiy to complain that Tehran was harming Ukrainian sovereignty and its citizens. Ukraine and the United States have accused Iran of supplying drones to Russia, which Tehran has denied. “Supplying weapons to Russia for the war against Ukraine is an unfriendly act that causes a serious blow to relations between Ukraine and Iran,” a statement on the Foreign Ministry website said. “In response to such a hostile act, the Ukrainian side decided to withdraw the accreditation of the Iranian ambassador and also significantly reduce the number of diplomatic staff of the Iranian embassy in Kyiv.” The message was given to Iran’s acting ambassador, as the permanent envoy, Manouchehr Moradi, is currently not in Ukraine. Military authorities in southern Ukraine said in a statement that they shot down Shahed-136 unmanned aerial vehicles over the sea near the port of Odessa. For the first time in Ukraine, the anti-aircraft guns of the Air Command “South” of the Air Force of the Armed Forces of Ukraine shot down the Iranian-made multipurpose attack UAV “Mohajer-6”. 🔥Telegram – pic twitter.com/iruEiqOtcr — Anatoly Shtefan (Shtirlitz) (@Shtirlitz53) September 23, 2022 Military experts say drones would be useful to Russia both as reconnaissance craft and as roving munitions that can bide their time to locate and engage suitable targets.
