The European Council adopted new sanctions on May 31 targeting six individual and three entities from Iran who are involved in the transfer of drones to support Russia’s war effort in Ukraine.
The sanctions also target those involved with the transfer of drones and missiles to “armed groups” in the Middle East and Red Sea region.
According to a news release from the European Council, among those targeted in the sanctions are Iran’s Defense Minister Mohammad-Reza Gharaei Ashtiani, as well as the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC) Navy, and Khatam al-Anbiya Central Headquarters, the entity in charge of making operational decisions on the deployment of drones.
Since the beginning of the all-out war, Iran has provided Russia with thousands of Shahed kamikaze drones and assisted with building a drone factory in Tatarstan, which was hit by Ukrainian forces in early April.
The new sanctions come as the EU leaders agreed on April 17 to implement new restrictions against Iran after its recent missile and drone attack on Israel. The participants of the summit also expressed their full support for Ukraine, condemning Russia’s recent attacks against Ukraine’s civilians and civilian and critical infrastructure, including in the energy sector.
In February, Reuters also reported on Iran sending “a large number of powerful surface-to-surface ballistic missiles” to Russia to fuel the ongoing war.
The targets of the sanctions will subject to an asset freeze as well as a travel ban to the European Union. The sanctions also prohibit the “provision of funds or economic resources” to those newly listed.
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The legal framework within which the funds will be transferred is still in progress, according to David O’Sullivan. The EU sanctions envoy hopes that the decision will be made in “a few weeks.”
