Russian Officials Trained In Iran As Part Of Drone Deal — State Department

Russian officials conducted training in Iran in recent weeks as part of an agreement on the transfer of drones between the two countries, a State Department deputy spokesperson Vedant Patel told TURAN's Washington correspondent during Thursday's daily press briefing.

Washington made it clear last month that it had information indicating Iran was preparing to provide Russia with up to several hundred drones, including some that are weapons capable, and that Russian officials had visited Iran to view attack-capable unmanned aerial vehicles (UAVs).

"We can confirm that during the last several weeks, Russian officials conducted training in Iran as part of the agreement of the UAV transfers," Patel said.

"Let me be clear: We will vigorously enforce all U.S. sanctions on both the Russian and Iranian arms trades," he added immediately.

The transfer of drones between the two countries was "potentially sanctionable under numerous authorities," as the deputy spokesperson put it. "The kind of transactions you’re mentioning are potentially sanctionable under numerous authorities, including but not limited to Russia-specific authorities and our worldwide nonproliferation sanctions."

"We remain incredibly concerned about Iran's use and proliferation of UAVs. They have been used to attack US forces, our partners in the region, and international shipping entities," Patel added/.

Washington will continue to use "all available tools, including but not limited to sanctions, to prevent, deter, and dismantle the procurement network that supplies UAV-related material and technology to Iran."

Patel's statement came just a day after Ukrainian Foreign Minister Dmytro Kuleba asked EU and G7 countries to stop issuing visas to Russian tourists.

The U.S. has not introduced any restrictions on issuing visas to Russian tourists, as TURAN's correspondent was told by Julie Stufft, deputy assistant secretary of state for visa services: "There is no restriction on the Russian travelers. Russian travelers can actually go to any embassy in the world where they are able to apply,” Stufft said.

Asked by TURAN on Thursday whether the State Department was considering reviewing its policy in response to Ukraine’s request, deputy spokesperson Vedant Patel said that Washington didn't want "to harm" the people of Russia: "We’ve been very clear that we intend our actions to not harm or have a significant impact on the Russian people."

Alex Raufoglu

Washington D.C.