Britain readies sanctions against Iran for supplying Russia with ‘kamikaze’ drones

British foreign minister James Cleverly says he will announce further sanctions in response to Iran’s supply of “Kamikaze” drones for use in “attacking civilian targets and critical infrastructure” in Ukraine.

“Iran cannot be allowed to violate UN resolutions,” Cleverly said on Thursday.

Kyiv claims Iranian-made Shahed-136 drones were used in recent Russian missile strikes on Ukraine. On Monday, Ukrainian president Volodymyr Zelensky said his troops intercepted and shot down 37 Iranian drones and several cruise missiles in just 12 hours.

It came after the European Union agreed to sanction Iran over its supply of drones to Russian forces.

Tehran, however, denies supplying the drones to Moscow and Russia has denied its forces had used Iranian drones to attack Ukraine.

The drones have been referred to as kamikazes by military officials because they can be packed with explosives and flown directly into a target.

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The drone, of which hundreds are believed to have been sought, is then destroyed upon impact.

They can be carried in a soldier’s backpack and launched in a matter of minutes to scope out enemy positions within a range of vast range of several miles at speeds of up to around 60 miles per hour.

Earlier this week, US and western allies said the supply of drones from Iran to Russia was a breach of the UN Security Council (UNSC).

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Under Resolution 2231, which endorsed the 2015 nuclear deal between Iran and six western countries – Britain, China, France, Germany, Russia and the US – a conventional arms embargo was put in place that expired in October 2020.

US State Department spokesperson Ned Price said: “We expressed our grave concerns about Russia’s acquisition of these UAVs from Iran.

“We now have abundant evidence that these UAVs are being used to strike Ukrainian civilians and critical civilian infrastructure.”

“We will not hesitate to use our sanctions and other appropriate tools on all involved in these transfers,” Price said.