Reuters – Tehran on Saturday accused Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky of calling on Iran to stop supplying drones to Russia as anti-Iranian propaganda, saying the president’s remarks prompted Western powers to send more weapons and weapons to Iran. He said it was meant to attract funding.
In a video address on Wednesday, President Zelensky called on the Iranian people to prevent the supply of drones to Moscow from slipping into the “dark side of history.”
Iran initially denied supplying Russia with Shahed drones, but later said it provided a small number of drones before the conflict began. Ukraine claims drones played a key role in Russia’s attacks on cities and infrastructure.
Iran’s foreign ministry spokesman Nasser Kanani said: “The Ukrainian president’s repeated delusional allegations against the Islamic Republic of Iran are aimed at attracting as many weapons and financial aid as possible from the West. Consistent with anti-Iranian propaganda and media warfare.” Statement by Iranian media.
Kanani said Ukraine has refused to allow an independent investigation into these allegations.
Political cartoons about world leaders
Russia has stepped up military cooperation with Iran since it launched a full-scale invasion of Ukraine in February 2022. It has allowed the use of Iranian-made drones, but is now trying to expand its own production.
“The simple question is, what is your interest in being complicit in Russian terrorism?” Mr Zelensky said in a speech Wednesday.
“Your shahed terrorizing Ukraine every night only means that the Iranian people are being pushed deeper and deeper into the dark side of history,” he said.
(Reporting by Dubai Newsroom, Editing by Conor Humphries)
Copyright 2023 Thomson Reuters.