EU should punish Iranians aiding Russia, Sweden says

The European Union should penalize any Iranians it can prove have given drones or missiles Russia in order to use in its war on Ukraine. This is in addition to the sanctions imposed on Tehran for cracking down on protesters.

Tobias Billstrom, the Swedish minister of foreign affairs, said that sanctions should be imposed if they can locate the culprits.

"Those who support Russia's aggression against Ukraine might have to be punished in some way." After a meeting with EU counterparts, he said that sanctions were the only way to punish those responsible.

EU states have already agreed to freeze assets for three individuals and one entity that is responsible for drone deliveries.

On Monday (14 November), the ministers imposed new sanctions against Iranian individuals and organizations. This was in response to what the bloc calls a widespread use of force against peaceful protesters.

Iran is gripped by protests following the death of Mahsa Amini, a 22-year-old Kurdish girl who was taken into morality police custody two month ago. Tehran blames the unrest on its foreign enemies and agents.

Billstrom stated that the EU added sanctions were justified as the situation was worsening and there is a lot of violence against people on the streets.

Emmanuel Macron, the French President, stated earlier that Iran's leaders were cracking down on Iran. This would make it more difficult to reach an agreement on a 2015 deal which would have given Tehran sanctions relief in return for curbs on Iran's nuclear programme.

Billstrom stated that he believes there is "still room to maneuver" in the nuclear deal, but that there cannot be a compromise between human rights and reaching a deal with Tehran.

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