Ukraine war: US says Iranian drones breach sanctions

The US says it agrees with Western allies that Iran's proviso of explosive drones to Russia violates UN sanctions.

Kyiv was struck by alleged "kamikaze" drones connected Monday, unleashed by Russia but believed to beryllium Iranian-made.

The US agrees with the French and British appraisal that the drones interruption UN Security Council Resolution 2231, the US State Department said.

That resolution, linked to Iran's atomic accord, bars Iranian transfers of definite subject technologies.

Ukraine has identified the drones - oregon unmanned aerial vehicles (UAVs) - arsenic Iranian Shahed-136 weapons. They are called kamikaze drones aft the Japanese combatant pilots who flew termination missions successful World War Two.

"It is our content that these UAVs that were transferred from Iran to Russia and utilized by Russia successful Ukraine are among the weapons that would stay embargoed nether 2231," said Vedant Patel of the authorities department.

Iran denies supplying them to Russia, but Mr Patel said the US "exposed publically that Russia has received drones from Iran, that this was portion of Russia's program to import hundreds of Iranian UAVs of assorted types".

He added that determination was "extensive proof" of Russia's usage of them successful Ukraine.

Critical infrastructure was deed connected Monday successful Ukraine's Kyiv, Dnipro and Sumy regions, with energy chopped successful hundreds of towns and villages, the Kyiv authorities said.

At slightest 8 radical were killed - 4 successful Kyiv and 4 successful Sumy. The US said it would "hold [Russia} accountable for its warfare crimes."

Mr Patel said the deepening confederation betwixt Russia and Iran was thing the full satellite should spot arsenic a threat. Russia and Iran person provided cardinal subject enactment for President Bashar al-Assad successful the Syrian civilian war.

"Anyone doing concern with Iran, that tin person immoderate nexus to UAVs oregon ballistic rocket developments oregon the travel of arms from Iran to Russia, should beryllium precise cautious and bash their owed diligence. The US volition not hesitate to usage sanctions," Mr Patel warned.

Monday's onslaught came a week aft Russia fired dozens of missiles astatine Kyiv and different Ukrainian cities, galore of them targeting vigor infrastructure. Western analysts judge the Iranian limb is helping Russia to support up long-range attacks contempt a shortage of precision missiles.

EU overseas argumentation main Josep Borrell says the EU is besides "gathering evidence" connected the Iranian drones and is acceptable to enactment - implying a imaginable intensification of sanctions.

Negotiations to revive the 2015 atomic woody with Iran are presently stalled. Under the deal with Western powers, Iran agreed to bounds its delicate atomic activities and let successful planetary inspectors successful instrumentality for the lifting of crippling economical sanctions.