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Iran Sent Short-Range Missiles to Russia, Western Officials Say
U.S. and European countries had warned of sanctions if Iran provided weapons that could be used against Ukraine. President Biden’s lame-duck status could hamper a response.
Iran has sent short-range ballistic missiles to Russia, according to U.S. and European officials, despite sharp warnings from Washington and its allies not to provide those armaments to Moscow to use against targets in Ukraine.
The new missiles are expected to help Russia further its efforts to destroy Ukraine’s civilian infrastructure, which President Volodymyr Zelensky of Ukraine said this week now involved 4,000 bombs a month across the country.
The U.S. and European officials, who spoke on the condition of anonymity to discuss sensitive matters, confirmed that after months of warnings about sanctions, Iran has shipped several hundred short-range ballistic missiles to Russia. The delivery was reported by The Wall Street Journal.
Iran denied providing the weapons in a statement released Friday by its permanent mission to the United Nations, saying its position on the war was unchanged.
“Iran considers the provision of military assistance to the parties engaged in the conflict — which leads to increased human casualties, destruction of infrastructure, and a distancing from cease-fire negotiations — to be inhumane,” the statement said. “Thus, not only does Iran abstain from engaging in such actions itself, but it also calls upon other countries to cease the supply of weapons to the sides involved in the conflict.”
The Group of 7 nations warned in March that they would impose coordinated sanctions on Iran if it carried out the missile transfer, a warning repeated at a NATO summit meeting in Washington in July.
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