ISTANBUL: Iran’s plans to supply Russia with weapons including drones and ballistic missiles in its war against Ukraine are “unacceptable,” NATO Secretary General Jens Stoltenberg said on Thursday.
Kyiv and its Western allies accuse Iran of supplying drones to Russia.
“We see Iran offering drones and considering ballistic missile deliveries to Russia,” Stoltenberg told a news conference in Istanbul.
“This is unacceptable. No country should provide support to Moscow in this illegal war.”
Kyiv has said around 400 Iranian drones have already been used against the civilian population of Ukraine, and Moscow has ordered around 2,000.
Tehran has rejected the allegation.
Stoltenberg added Russian President Vladimir Putin was failing in Ukraine, but “responding with more brutality.”
“In recent weeks, we have seen dozens of drone and missile strikes across Ukraine. Including on critical infrastructure,” he added.
Russia is “cruelly and deliberately depriving Ukrainian civilians of heating, water and electricity at the outset of winter,” Stoltenberg said.
Iran plans to supply Russia with arms ‘unacceptable’: NATO chief
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Iran plans to supply Russia with arms ‘unacceptable’: NATO chief
- Kyiv and its Western allies accuse Iran of supplying drones to Russia
- Kyiv has said around 400 Iranian drones have already been used against the civilian population of Ukraine
Syrian government says it controls prison in Raqqa with Daesh-linked detainees
- Prison holds detainees linked to Daesh, and witnessed clashes in its vicinity between advancing Syrian government forces and Kurdish fighters
Syria’s Interior Ministry said on Friday it had taken over Al-Aktan prison in the city of Raqqa in northeastern Syria, a facility that was formerly under the control of Kurdish-led Syrian Democratic Forces (SDF).
The prison has been holding detainees linked to the militant group Daesh, and witnessed clashes in its vicinity this week between advancing Syrian government forces and the SDF.
It was not immediately clear how many Daesh detainees remain in Al-Aktan prison as the US military has started transferring up to 7,000 prisoners linked to the militant Islamist group from Syrian jails to neighboring Iraq. US officials say the detainees are citizens of many countries, including in Europe.
“Specialized teams were formed from the counter-terrorism department and other relevant authorities to take over the tasks of guarding and securing the prison and controlling the security situation inside it,” the Interior Ministry said in a statement.
Under a sweeping integration deal agreed on Sunday, responsibility for prisons housing Daesh detainees was meant to be transferred to the Syrian government.
The SDF said on Monday it was battling Syrian government forces near Al-Aktan and that the seizure of the prison by the government forces “could have serious security repercussions that threaten stability and pave the way for a return to chaos and terrorism.”
The US transfer of Daesh prisoners follows the rapid collapse of Kurdish-led forces in northeast Syria. Concerns over prison security intensified after the escape on Tuesday of roughly 200 low-level Daesh fighters from Syria’s Shaddadi prison. Syrian government forces later recaptured many of them.
