Special Envoy for Iran Rob Malley says the US will continue to expose the Islamic Republic’s support for the Russian invasion of Ukraine.
In an interview with Al Arabiya published on Thursday, he said, “I think it’s clear that Iran has moved closer to Russia. We think it’s a very bad bed that Iran has made, but it’s clear to the world today that Iran has sided with Russia and its war of aggression against Ukraine.”
Amid international outcry over the Islamic Republic’s supply of drones and ballistic missiles to Moscow, Kiev said earlier in the week that Tehran plans to ship even more arms to Russia. Ukranian intelligence agencies claimed that the Islamic Republic is set to deliver more than 200 Shahed-136 and Arash-2 kamikaze drones, and Mohajer-6 reconnaissance and combat UAVs later in November.
Malley added that “It’s something that we have exposed, that others have exposed, and I think … the first step to take is to make sure the world knows to run, and people know what their government is doing,” noting that “it’s clear as well that the Iranian government is embarrassed by that because they keep denying that they’ve transferred these drones to Russia in the face of mounting and incontrovertible evidence.”
He vowed more punitive measures against “anyone who is related even tangentially to those transfers,” warning that “Any economic operator in the region, or elsewhere, should be very careful about involving themselves in such transfers because we will sanction them.”