Ukraine to slash ties with Iran over 'evil' drones supply to Russia
Reuters
Published Sep 23, 2022 02:05PM ET
Updated Sep 23, 2022 05:56PM ET
By David Ljunggren
(Reuters) -Ukraine said on Friday it would downgrade diplomatic ties with Iran over Tehran's decision to supply Russian forces with drones, a move President Volodymyr Zelenskiy called "a collaboration with evil".
Zelenskiy said a total of eight Iranian-made unmanned aerial vehicles had been shot down so far in the conflict.
Ukraine and the United States accused Iran of supplying drones to Russia, a charge Tehran denies.
"Today the Russian army used Iranian drones for its strikes. ... The world will know about every instance of collaboration with evil, and it will have corresponding consequences," Zelenskiy said in a late night video address.
Military authorities in southern Ukraine said in a statement they had shot down four Shahed-136 "kamikaze" unmanned aerial vehicles over the sea near the port of Odesa on Friday.
The air force said separately that for the first time it had brought down a Mohajer-6, a larger Iranian drone, the Ukrainska Pravda newspaper reported.
The Ukrainian foreign ministry earlier said the supply of drones had dealt a serious blow to bilateral relations.
"In response to such an unfriendly act, the Ukrainian side has decided to deprive the ambassador of Iran of his accreditation and also to significantly reduce the number of diplomatic staff of the Iranian embassy in Kyiv," it said in a statement on its website.
The message was handed to the acting ambassador since the permanent envoy, Manouchehr Moradi, is not currently in Ukraine.
Military experts say the drones would be useful to Russia for both reconnaissance and as loitering munitions that can bide their time in locating and engaging suitable targets.
In August, a senior U.S. administration official said Russia has faced "numerous failures" with Iranian-made drones acquired from Tehran.
Get The News You Want
Written By: Reuters
Trading in financial instruments and/or cryptocurrencies involves high risks including the risk of losing some, or all, of your investment amount, and may not be suitable for all investors. Prices of cryptocurrencies are extremely volatile and may be affected by external factors such as financial, regulatory or political events. Trading on margin increases the financial risks.
Before deciding to trade in financial instrument or cryptocurrencies you should be fully informed of the risks and costs associated with trading the financial markets, carefully consider your investment objectives, level of experience, and risk appetite, and seek professional advice where needed.
Fusion Media would like to remind you that the data contained in this website is not necessarily real-time nor accurate. The data and prices on the website are not necessarily provided by any market or exchange, but may be provided by market makers, and so prices may not be accurate and may differ from the actual price at any given market, meaning prices are indicative and not appropriate for trading purposes. Fusion Media and any provider of the data contained in this website will not accept liability for any loss or damage as a result of your trading, or your reliance on the information contained within this website.
It is prohibited to use, store, reproduce, display, modify, transmit or distribute the data contained in this website without the explicit prior written permission of Fusion Media and/or the data provider. All intellectual property rights are reserved by the providers and/or the exchange providing the data contained in this website.
Fusion Media may be compensated by the advertisers that appear on the website, based on your interaction with the advertisements or advertisers.