The European Union has announced sanctions against more than a dozen Iranian people and companies, including the country's deputy defense minister and the national airline, over the alleged transfer of missiles and drones to Russia.
The European Council said on Monday that seven people and as many entities in total would be subject to an asset freeze and a travel ban for their involvement in the transfer of weapons and equipment to Moscow for use in its war against Ukraine.
Targets include Iranian Deputy Defense Minister Seyed Hamzeh Ghalandari, senior members of the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps' Quds Force and three Iranian airlines, including Iran Air.
European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen welcomed the sanctions.
“The Iranian regime's support for Russia's war of aggression against Ukraine is unacceptable and must stop,” von der Leyen said in a post on X.
“I therefore welcome the adoption of our sanctions against individuals and entities in response to the transfers of drones and missiles from Iran to Russia. More is needed.”
Ukrainian Foreign Minister Andrii Sybiha also welcomed the sanctions, writing in X that those who “support aggression must share responsibility and pay the price.”
Iranian Foreign Ministry spokesman Esmail Baghaei denied on Tuesday that Tehran had supplied missiles to Russia and condemned the sanctions as contrary to international law.
“Some European countries and the United Kingdom have unfortunately claimed without evidence that Iran has intervened militarily in this conflict, which is totally refuted,” Baghaei said.
The latest sanctions come after the United States said last month that it had intelligence indicating that Iran had supplied Russia with ballistic missiles for use in Ukraine.
Iran's President Masoud Pezeshkian denied at the time that Tehran had transferred weapons to Russia since his administration took power in August, acknowledging that it was “possible that a handover had taken place in the past.”
EU member countries, in addition to Hungary, have provided military and economic support to Ukraine worth some 118 billion euros ($129 billion) since Russia launched its large-scale invasion in February 2022.
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