Iranian Foreign Minister did not confirm the sale of military equipment to Russia, including unmanned aerial vehicles, affirming that Tehran avoids any steps that may escalate tensions between Moscow and Ukraine.
"We have various forms of cooperation with Russia, including in the sphere of defence, but we are not helping either side involved in the [Ukrainian] conflict because we are certain that it should be concluded," Hossein Amir-Abdollahian said in his interview with La Repubblica newspaper published on Wednesday.
He noted that the current problem revolves around some Western countries, including the US, as they are manufacturing arms and trying to sell their products.
"We are trying to avoid any actions that may lead to an escalation. We are working on stopping this war," the Iranian top diplomat added commenting on remarks by U.S. Presidential National Security Advisor Jake Sullivan on Tehran's plans to send drones to Russia.
On Monday, Sullivan claimed that Iran was planning to hand over to Russia up to several hundreds of unmanned aerial vehicles, including those capable of carrying armaments. Additionally, he indicated that Tehran was planning to train Russian forces to use these drones with the first stages of training beginning as early as July.
Meanwhile, Russian President Vladimir Putin is set to meet with Iran’s Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei during his trip to the Republic, Russia’s Ambassador to Tehran Levan Dzhagaryan told the Rossiya-24 television.
"We expect [Putin] to meet with the supreme leader of the Islamic Republic of Iran, and his meetings with President [Ebrahim] Raisi and [Turkish] President [Recep Tayyip] Erdogan are also planned," the Russian envoy said.
In the same vein, Dzhagaryan asserted that Moscow sees Iran’s position on Ukraine and the Russian special military operation as balanced and acceptable for Russia.
"From the very start, the leadership of Iran took a very balanced position regarding the situation in Ukraine and the Russian special military operation," he stated. "It is clear that Iran is opposed to the war, which causes many miseries for the civilian population."
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