On Thursday, October 12, 2023, the United States handed over to UN member states the wreckage and components of Iranian military drones that Washington said it recovered in Ukraine, evidence of a relationship, according to the Pentagon “thorough” between Tehran and Russia.
This is the first time that the Defense Intelligence Agency (DIA) of the American Mission to the United Nations exhibited carcasses, engines and components of military drones from Iran, including Unmanned Aerial Vehicles (UAV) Shahed 101, Shahed 131 and Shahed 136, which Washington states “restored” in the theater of war in Ukraine.
“These are not replicas, they are real. Weapons of war that Iran passed on to malicious actors » This was a violation of the UN Security Council resolution on Iran’s nuclear program, accused US Ambassador Linda Thomas-Greenfield.
“Iranian officials have not hidden their ambition to increase sales of these attack drones […] We’re not afraid to talk about it publicly, but we need your partnership, we need your voices.”she said to dozens of ambassadors from UN member states who were invited to observe these wrecks.
DIA officials showed four journalists the same debris and debris from military suicide drones on Wednesday evening and compared these devices found in Iraq in 2021 and 2022 to others “almost equal” Found in Ukraine in 2022.
Iran, which is very close to Russia, has been accused by Western countries for months of supplying large quantities of drones, particularly explosives, to the Russian army to support it in the war in Ukraine, something Tehran denies.
Russian losses
The Ukrainian General Staff published its regular assessment of Russian troops’ losses since the invasion of the country on February 24, 2022.
According to Kiev, Kremlin forces lost 284,890 soldiers, an increase of 990 dead in three days, as well as 9,264 armored vehicles, but also 9,170 tanks and support vehicles, 6,763 artillery pieces, 4,905 assault tanks, 5,247 drones or 1,531 cruise missiles, 966 special equipment, 545 air defense systems as well as 316 helicopters and 316 fighter aircraft.
The regular publication of these figures, which could not be verified, is part of the Ukrainian communications strategy aimed at undermining the morale of Moscow’s troops.
Suspicion of poisoning of a journalist
Paris prosecutors have opened an investigation following the discomfort of Russian journalist Marina Ovsiannikova, who is known for expressing her opposition to the war in Ukraine live on Russian television, a spokesman said on Thursday (12). October 2023.
“We have launched an investigation”confirmed the spokesman for the Paris court.
The 45-year-old journalist felt uncomfortable outside her Paris apartment.
Christophe Deloire, director general of Reporters Without Borders, said on X, formerly Twitter, that he had spoken to Marina Ovsiannikova. “We were afraid for Marina Ovsiannikova, and the hypothesis of poisoning was put forward and not ruled out, but contrary to the press release, Marina did not report that she was poisoned. We can confirm it since we were with her all day.”.
Marina Ovsiannikova fled Russia after holding up a sign against the war in Ukraine in the middle of a television news story, less than three weeks after Russian forces began the invasion of Ukraine on February 24, 2022.
Swiss finances criticized
The US criticizes the Swiss banking sector for not correctly applying the international sanctions imposed on Russia. A criticism that the Swiss financial world considers unfair.
According to Denis Pittet, president of the Geneva Place Financière Foundation, quoting the newspaper Le Temps, Switzerland has adopted all eleven sanctions packages imposed by the European Union, unlike nine G20 members, including the financial centers Dubai, and Hong Kong, which did not impose sanctions .