September 11 () –
The British Foreign Office on Wednesday summoned Iranian Chargé d’Affaires in London, Ali Matinfar, in retaliation for Tehran’s recent shipment of ballistic missiles to Moscow in the framework of the war in Ukraine.
“The UK Government has been clear that any transfer of ballistic missiles to Russia would be viewed as a dangerous escalation and would face a significant response,” the British government said in a statement, adding that the move came after coordination with European partners.
British Foreign Secretary David Lammy had already indicated the day before that the alliance between the two countries represents a “significant escalation” in the conflict that broke out in Ukraine in February 2022, following the invasion ordered by Russian President Vladimir Putin of the neighboring country.
Washington has accused Tehran of supplying Russia with dozens of missiles with a range of around 120 kilometres, prompting joint condemnation from Britain, France and Germany, who say this represents “a direct threat to European security”.
The three powers, which have joined forces as negotiators of the failed 2015 nuclear deal, confirmed yesterday that they would impose new sanctions and cancel bilateral air services agreements with Tehran with “immediate” effect.
Both Tehran and Moscow have distanced themselves in recent days from reports of ballistic missile deliveries, while kyiv summoned the Iranian chargé d’affaires on Monday to ask for explanations on the matter.
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