U.S. Secretary of State: For peace in Ukraine, Russia’s military cooperation with Iran, North Korea and China must be stopped

U.S. Secretary of State Antony Blinken is convinced that to promote peace in Ukraine, Russia’s military cooperation with Iran, North Korea, and China must be stopped.

It is the supply of weapons and equipment from these countries that fuels the Russian war machine.

He stated this during a speech at a meeting of the UN Security Council on Tuesday, September 24.

Blinken named “immediate and interconnected” steps that Ukraine’s allies should take.

“First, we must address Russia’s growing cooperation with North Korea and Iran,” he emphasized.

The U.S. Secretary of State recalled that Iran supplies attack drones to Russia and has built a plant for their production in Russia, and just a few weeks ago “handed over hundreds of short-range ballistic missiles to Russia.”

Meanwhile, the DPRK has delivered trainloads of weapons and ammunition to Russia, including ballistic missiles, launchers, and millions of artillery rounds.

He noted that these actions by Iran, North Korea, and Russia have violated multiple Security Council resolutions – resolutions that Russia voted for and, as a permanent member, has a special responsibility to enforce.

Blinken emphasized that this is also not a one-way street: the DPRK, along with Iran, is receiving assistance from Russia to circumvent sanctions and further destabilize their regions.

China’s assistance

“North Korea and Iran are not the only ones aiding and abetting Russia. China, another permanent member of this council, is the top provider of machine tools, microelectronics, and other items that Russia is using to rebuild, to restock, to ramp up its war machine and sustain its brutal aggression,” the U.S. Secretary of State noted.

In September, Ukraine imposed new sanctions against six citizens of the Russian Federation, Iran, and China for a period of ten years, as well as against 40 legal entities from these countries for the same period.