Iran: Zelensky's drone criticism a bid to get Ukraine more Western arms

Iran initially denied supplying Shahed drones to Russia but later said it had provided a small number before the conflict began. Ukraine says the drones have played a major role in Russia's attacks.

 A drone flies above the Indian ocean, Iran, in this handout image obtained on July 15, 2022.  (photo credit: IRANIAN ARMY/WANA (WEST ASIA NEWS AGENCY)/HANDOUT VIA REUTERS)
A drone flies above the Indian ocean, Iran, in this handout image obtained on July 15, 2022.
(photo credit: IRANIAN ARMY/WANA (WEST ASIA NEWS AGENCY)/HANDOUT VIA REUTERS)

Tehran on Saturday accused Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky of anti-Iranian propaganda in his call for Iran to halt the supply of drones to Russia, saying his comments were designed to attract more arms and financial aid from the West.

Zelensky in a video address on Wednesday called on Iranians to stop their slide into "the dark side of history" by supplying Moscow with drones.

Iran's involvement in the Russia-Ukraine war

Iran initially denied supplying Shahed drones to Russia but later said it had provided a small number before the conflict began. Ukraine says the drones have played a major role in Russia's attacks on cities and infrastructure.

"The Ukrainian president's repeat of delusional claims against the Islamic Republic of Iran is in line with the anti-Iranian propaganda and media war aimed at attracting as many arms and financial aid as possible from Western countries," Iranian foreign ministry spokesman Nasser Kanaani said in a statement carried by Iranian media.

Ukraine, Kanaani said, has been refusing to allow an independent investigation into these claims.

 A part of an unmanned aerial vehicle, what Ukrainian military authorities described as an Iranian made suicide drone Shahed-136 and which was shot down near the town of Kupiansk, amid Russia's attack on Ukraine, is seen in Kharkiv region, Ukraine, in this handout picture released September 13, 2022 (credit: THE STRATEGIC COMMUNICATIONS DIRECTORATE OF THE UKRAINIAN ARMED FORCES/HANDOUT VIA REUTERS)
A part of an unmanned aerial vehicle, what Ukrainian military authorities described as an Iranian made suicide drone Shahed-136 and which was shot down near the town of Kupiansk, amid Russia's attack on Ukraine, is seen in Kharkiv region, Ukraine, in this handout picture released September 13, 2022 (credit: THE STRATEGIC COMMUNICATIONS DIRECTORATE OF THE UKRAINIAN ARMED FORCES/HANDOUT VIA REUTERS)

Russia has boosted its military cooperation with Iran since the launch of its full-scale invasion of Ukraine in February 2022. It has admitted using Iranian-made drones, but it is now seeking to boost its own production.

In his Wednesday address, Zelensky said: "The simple question is this: what is your interest in being an accomplice to Russian terror?"

"Your Shaheds, which terrorize Ukraine every night, mean only that the people of Iran are being driven deeper and deeper into the dark side of history," he said.