EU imposes new sanctions on Iran
The European Union has imposed fresh sanctions on Iran over alleged human rights violations and drone deliveries to Russia for use in the Ukraine war.
EU foreign ministers, during their meeting in Brussels on Monday, announced a new package of sanctions targeting 20 Iranian individuals and one entity over alleged rights violations and “use of force by the Iranian authorities against peaceful protesters.”
Four more Iranian individuals and four entities were sanctioned as well over alleged drone deliveries to Russia, which the EU claims “are being used indiscriminately by Russia against Ukrainian civilian population and infrastructure.”
Those blacklisted face an asset freeze and a travel ban to the EU.
Iranian authorities have denied using force against protesters, saying that what is currently happening in the country is riots that are part of a foreign-backed plot to cause divisions in Iran and hinder its progress.
Tehran sees the sanctions over its response to the riots as a meddlesome move by the European Union.
In the meantime, the Iranian authorities have denied supplying drones to Russia for use in the Ukraine war, saying that the unmanned aerial vehicles had been shipped to Russia before the war began in February 2022.
The Islamic Republic says that the deliveries were part of defense cooperation with Moscow, and have nothing to do with the Ukraine war.