INSUBCONTINENT EXCLUSIVE:
Iran admitted for the first time on Saturday that it has sent drones to Russia, but insisted they were supplied to its ally before the
Russian invasion of Ukraine."We supplied Russia with a limited number of drones months before the war in Ukraine," Foreign Minister Hossein
Amir-Abdollahian said, quoted by the official news agency IRNA.Ukraine and its Western allies have accused Russia of using Iranian-made
drones in recent weeks to carry out attacks in Ukraine
Tehran has repeatedly denied these claims.Iran has repeatedly denied that it has been supplying arms to Russia for use in the Ukraine
war."In a telephone conversation with the Ukrainian foreign minister last week, we agreed that if there was evidence (of Moscow's use of
Iranian drones), he would provide it to us," Amir-Abdollahian said."If the Ukrainian side keeps its promise, we can discuss this issue in
the coming days and we will take into account their evidence," he added.The Iranian foreign minister again denied his country had supplied
missiles to Russia, calling the accusations "completely false".The Washington Post reported on October 16 that Iran was preparing to ship
missiles to Russia.Kyiv has said around 400 Iranian drones have already been used against the civilian population of Ukraine, and that
Moscow has ordered around 2,000.In response to these transfers, the European Union and United Kingdom have imposed sanctions on three
Iranian generals and an arms firm accused of supplying Russia with drones.In September, Kiev decided to significantly reduce diplomatic
relations with Tehran because of alleged arms shipments to the country.
