New UK sanctions for alleged Russian suppliers hit Turkish and Emirati firms, Iranian drone maker

BELFAST — The UK on Tuesday announced new sanctions targeting 25 individuals and businesses the government says are supporting Russia’s illegal invasion of Ukraine, going after firms in Turkey and the Emirates, as well as Iranian figures.

Overall, 22 of the sanctions apply to non-Russian entities ranging from a Belarusian plant said to be “repairing Russian military equipment,” to a Dubai-based firm accused of supplying unmanned aircraft and two Turkish firms accused of supplying microelectronics to Moscow. They also target a Slovakian individual for allegedly attempting to set up an “arms deal” between North Korea and Russia, and a Swiss national for purportedly playing a role in Russia’s financial sector.

A collection of seven executives belonging to an Iranian UAV manufacturer also have been sanctioned. The move comes after the US Department of the Treasury’s Office of Foreign Assets Control (OFAC) similarly sanctioned eight “senior executives” from the same company in February 2023.

A UK minister previously told Breaking Defense that “Russia’s extensive use of Iranian drones” had led to Ukraine and Western allies detecting weaknesses of the aircraft and develop ways of countering them. Ukraine officials have often stated the country’s armed forces have shot down Iranian-made Shahed series drones.

OP ED: Iranian drones could make Russia’s military more lethal in Ukraine

London has also sanctioned three Russian electronics companies for procuring “UK-sanctioned western microelectronics” deemed “essential for sustaining Russia’s conflict in Ukraine,” according to a August 8 UK foreign ministry statement.

“This sanctions package is part of a series of wider action targeting those critical to supplying and funding Putin’s war machine — and it is the biggest ever UK action on military suppliers in third countries,” it added.

UK foreign secretary James Cleverly said, “Today’s landmark sanctions will further diminish Russia’s arsenal and close the net on supply chains propping up Putin’s now struggling defence industry.”

London has also vowed to work with international partners to stop third party military equipment reaching Moscow.