In a press conference in Japan on August 7, Iranian regime Foreign Minister Hossein Amir Abdollahian reiterated the previous statements of regime’s officials about Russia’s invasion of Ukraine. He claimed that NATO and NATO provocations were the main cause of the Ukraine war.
Amir Abdollahian claimed that the Iranian regime has taken “active measures at the highest level to stop the war and engage in negotiations” and emphasized that it will continue these efforts to “stop the war and focus on a political solution to end this crisis.”
Sending suicide drones to Russia
In response to a question about sending drones to Russia, Amir Abdollahian once again refuted the claim saying, “We have never provided Moscow with the capabilities to use Iranian drones or weapons in the Ukraine war.”
This claim is made while the published photos and videos of downed Russian drones in Ukraine confirm their Iranian origin.
With the revelation that the drones used by Russia in the war against Ukraine are of Iranian make, the regime initially denied the whole issue, but after a while, it confirmed the sale of drones to Russia but claimed that this sale took place before the Ukraine war.
On August 4, the US Defense Intelligence Agency unveiled the remains of Iranian-made drones downed in Ukraine in an exhibition. In the exhibit, the remains of the wings and engine of the downed Shahed-131 drones in Ukraine were compared to an intact drone of the same type obtained last year in Iraqi Kurdistan.
Hossein Amir Abdollahian continued his statements by claiming that last year, he personally asked the Ukrainian Foreign Minister to provide evidence of the downed Russian drones’ Iranian origin. He stated that a meeting between delegations from both countries was arranged to address this issue in Warsaw, Poland. However, according to Amir Abdollahian, the Ukrainian side did not show up at the meeting.
He also claimed that during the next meeting between Iranian and Ukrainian delegations, which took place in Muscat, Oman, no acceptable evidence was presented by Ukraine regarding the raised allegations. These statements again contradict the facts that have been previously reported.
English-language Amwaj Media reported in February about the meeting between Iranian and Ukrainian delegations in Oman in November 2022, quoting a high-ranking Iranian source as saying, “These negotiations were very preliminary, and the Ukrainians presented evidence of the use of Iranian-made drones in the war in Ukraine.” The source then explained, “Tehran accepted the evidence and stated that the equipment was sold much earlier than the time of the war.”
The Iranian regime’s Foreign Minister made these statements during his trip to Japan.
In April, after the two-day meeting, G7 foreign ministers issued a statement confirming their intention to ask the Iranian regime to halt its provision of military assistance to the Russian army in its aggressive war against Ukraine.
It has been reported that the Iranian regime also uses Chinese components in drone production.
The Wall Street Journal reported that Western researchers said they made an important discovery after examination a downed drone. One of drone’s components was made in China this year.
This shows that despite increasing pressure from the United States to close global supply chain routes, China has continued to send manufacturing components for its unmanned aircraft program to Iran.
This research also shows how quickly Iran can assist Russia in the war against Ukraine and that it only needs three months to build the requested equipment for Moscow. It also refutes the claims by the regime that it had provided drones to Moscow prior to the beginning of its invasion of Ukraine.
The Chinese component was manufactured in January, sent to Iran, installed, and then sent to Russia, where it was used against Ukraine in April.
The Chinese component discovered in 2023 by this research group was part of the navigation system of the highly destructive V-shaped drone known as Shahed-136.
