Ukrainian Foreign Minister Dmitry Kuleba suggested on Tuesday that Kiev should break off diplomatic relations with Iran for allegedly delivering arms and drones to Russia. Both Moscow and Tehran have repeatedly denied such allegations.
Speaking at a press briefing, Kuleba denounced what he called Tehran’s “lies” and “vile acts,” accusing the Middle Eastern nation of “bearing full responsibility for the fracturing of ties with Ukraine.” As a result, he said that he had asked Ukraine’s President Vladimir Zelensky to cut diplomatic relations with Iran.
According to Kuleba, the move is justified by “the extensive destruction inflicted by Iranian drones on Ukrainian civilian infrastructure, the deaths and suffering inflicted on our people,” as well as by reports that Iran may be supplying arms to Russia.
The minister insisted that Ukraine had never adopted an anti-Iranian stance. “However, after Iran became complicit in criminal aggression and Russian crimes on our territory, we will take a very clear and honest position,” he stressed, adding that if Tehran stops supplying Moscow with weaponry, relations might be restored.
Kuleba’s request to Zelensky comes as Ukrainian MP Alexey Goncharenko on Tuesday submitted a bill to parliament calling for diplomatic engagement with Iran to be severed and the country branded ‘a state sponsor of terrorism’ over its alleged role in the Ukraine conflict.
In late August, the Washington Post, citing US officials, reported that Iran had sent to Russia a batch of its top-of-the-line unmanned aerial vehicles, including the Shahed-129, Shahed-191, and Mohajer-6, all of which are designed for both attacking and surveillance. Later, the outlet said that Tehran had agreed to send Moscow its surface-to-surface missiles.
Iran has on numerous occasions dismissed reports of arms shipments to Russia, citing its foreign policy stance, which it says is “based on active neutrality” and “opposition to war.” This statement was to some extent echoed by Russia, with Kremlin Press Secretary Dmitry Peskov stating on Tuesday that all weapons used by Moscow’s forces have Russian designations.