Zelensky introduces 50-year Iran sanctions bill

Kyiv and its allies say Iran has been supplying Russia with arms, including hundreds of drones, since Moscow invaded Ukraine last year.

 Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky speaks during a press conference at the Group of Seven (G7) summit in Hiroshima, western Japan, Sunday, May 21, 2023. (photo credit: Louise Delmotte/Pool via REUTERS)
Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky speaks during a press conference at the Group of Seven (G7) summit in Hiroshima, western Japan, Sunday, May 21, 2023.
(photo credit: Louise Delmotte/Pool via REUTERS)

Ukraine's President Volodymyr Zelensky has put forward a bill that would see Ukraine impose sanctions on Russian ally Iran for 50 years, Zelensky's chief of staff Andriy Yermak said on Sunday, a response to what Kyiv says is Tehran's weapons supplies to Moscow.

Kyiv and its allies say Iran has been supplying Russia with arms, including hundreds of drones, since Moscow invaded Ukraine last year. Tehran rejects the allegations.

If passed by Ukraine's parliament, the bill would stop Iranian goods transiting through Ukraine and use of its airspace, as well as imposing trade, financial and technology sanctions against Iran and its citizens.

Kyiv said on Sunday that Moscow had staged the largest drone strike to date on Ukraine overnight, using 54 Iran-made drones. It said 52 of them were shot down.

Russian air strikes on Kyiv

Russia unleashed multiple waves of air strikes on Kyiv overnight on Saturday night in what officials said appeared to be the largest Iranian-made drone attack on the city since the start of the war, as the Ukrainian capital prepared to celebrate the anniversary of its founding on Sunday.

 An explosion of a drone is seen in the sky over the city during a Russian drone strike, amid Russia's attack on Ukraine, in Kyiv, Ukraine May 28, 2023. (credit: GLEB GARANICH/REUTERS)
An explosion of a drone is seen in the sky over the city during a Russian drone strike, amid Russia's attack on Ukraine, in Kyiv, Ukraine May 28, 2023. (credit: GLEB GARANICH/REUTERS)

Ukraine's Air Force said it downed 52 out of the 54 Russia-launched drones, calling it a record attack with the Iranian-made "kamikaze" drones. It was not immediately clear how many of the drones were shot over Kyiv.

In what also appears to be the first deadly attack on Kyiv in May and the 14th assault this month, falling debris killed a 41-year-old man, Mayor Vitali Klitschko said.