‘No legal prohibition’ on sale of Shahed drone: Iran’s UN mission

Iran’s permanent mission to the United Nations has stressed that there is “no legal prohibition” on the sale of the country’s Shahed drone to other countries after some US reports alleged it was used by Russia in its war on Ukraine.

“The Shahed drone is among the world’s most advanced unmanned aerial vehicles, possessing exceptional reconnaissance, surveillance, and operational capabilities while maintaining an extremely cost-effective price,” the mission said in a post on X on Friday.

“There is no legal prohibition on its sale. Any country that commits to refraining from using it in acts of aggression against another state is eligible to apply for its purchase,” it emphasized.

An Iranian drone, which was allegedly downed in Ukraine, was displayed at the Conservative Political Action Conference, a political conference addressing the purported threat of Iran, in the US state of Maryland this week.

The Shahed-136 drone was allegedly transported with cooperation from Ukrainian and Polish special forces and United Against Nuclear Iran (UANI), a US-based nonprofit headed by Mark Wallace who served as a US ambassador at the UN.

Western sources have claimed that Russia calls the drone Geran-2 and has used it in its war on Ukraine. Under this pretext, the US and European Union have imposed sanctions on Tehran.

Both Iran and Russia have repeatedly denied claims that Tehran has provided Moscow with drones to be used in the Ukraine war.

The anti-Iran claims first emerged in July 2022, with then US National Security Advisor Jake Sullivan alleging that Washington had received “information” indicating that the Islamic Republic was preparing to provide Russia with “up to several hundred drones, including weapons-capable UAVs on an expedited timeline” for use in the war.

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