The EU was also banning Iran’s purchase and transportation of crude oil and the sale or supply of gold and certain naval equipment. Representational file image.
| Photo Credit: Reuters

Brussels, Belgium:

The European Union is expected to impose sanctions on Monday on people and organisations linked to Iranian transfers of ballistic missiles to Russia, two European diplomats and a high-ranking EU official said on Friday.

EU foreign ministers will approve sanctions on 14 individuals and organisations over the transfer, including airlines and other companies, according to one of the diplomats, speaking on condition of anonymity.

EU officials did not identify the firms or individuals. Diplomats had previously said the EU was looking at measures that would curb the operations of national airline Iran Air.

Last month, the United States, citing intelligence it said had been shared with allies, said Russia had received ballistic missiles from Iran for its war in Ukraine.

Washington immediately imposed sanctions on ships and companies it said were involved in weapons transfers.

The EU then said it had received “credible information” on the transfer of Iranian ballistic missiles to Russia and foreign policy chief Josep Borrell proposed “a substantial set of decisive and targeted measures” against Iran in response.

Monday’s package will be the first results of that proposal. As the 27-country EU requires unanimity to agree on sanctions, such decisions usually take some time.

Following the U.S. allegations, Iran’s President Masoud Pezeshkian said his government had not transferred any weapons to Russia since it took office in August.

The high-ranking EU official said Iranian Foreign Minister Abbas Araqchi had told Borrell that Iran had supplied “short- range rockets” to Russia that could fly up to 250 kilometers.

The Iranian minister insisted the rockets were not ballistic and did not specify when they had been transferred, according to the EU official, speaking on condition of anonymity.

EU officials also said discussions were continuing among EU countries over whether to list Iran’s powerful Revolutionary Guards military force as a terrorist organisation.

A decision by a German court has provided a legal basis for such a listing but EU members were still debating whether it was politically wise to make the designation, officials said.
 

(Except for the headline, this story has not been edited by NDTV staff and is published from a syndicated feed.)

Brussels:

European Union leaders agreed Wednesday to impose new sanctions on Iran’s drone and missile producers over Tehran’s unprecedented weekend attack on Israel, EU chief Charles Michel said.

“We have decided to put in place sanctions against Iran, it is a clear signal that we wanted to send,” the European Council president said at an EU summit in Brussels.

“The idea is to target the companies that are needed for the drones, for the missiles.”

Iran launched an unprecedented drone and missile onslaught over the weekend against Israel, which caused little damage after most of the projectiles were intercepted.

Tehran’s first-ever direct assault on Israeli soil came in response to a deadly attack on the Iranian consulate in Damascus widely blamed on Israel.

Israel’s Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said his country will decide how to respond to Iran’s attack as global powers called for restraint to avoid escalation.

The EU leaders in their statement from the summit urged “all parties to exercise the utmost restraint and to refrain from any action that may increase tensions in the region.”

The EU has already imposed sanctions on Iran over its supply of drones to Russia for its war in Ukraine, but they have had little effect on cutting the ties between Tehran and Moscow.  

(Except for the headline, this story has not been edited by NDTV staff and is published from a syndicated feed.)