Tehran, October 17 (RHC)--Iran’s flag carrier Iran Air has cancelled all of its flights to European destinations a day after the European Union (EU) announced sanctions against the airline, claiming it has been involved in Iran’s alleged supply of drones and missiles to Russia.
Spokesman of the Civil Aviation Organization of Iran said on Tuesday that Iran Air had cancelled flights to Europe to prevent any inconveniences that could be caused for passengers by EU’s sanctions, including potential bans on the landing of Iran Air planes at European airports.
Jafar Yazarlou described the sanctions, which also targeted Iran’s Mahan Air and Saha Airlines, as a violation of regulations and treaties governing international aviation.
Yazarlou said Iran’s civil aviation authorities were cooperating with the Iranian Foreign Ministry and airlines in the country to adopt measures to facilitate passenger travels from Iran to European destinations.
Based on information available on its website, Iran Air has been flying to seven destinations in EU countries, namely Roma, Milan, Vienna, Hamburg, Cologne, Frankfurt and Paris.
It was not clear whether the cancellations would also affect Iran Air’s regular flights between Tehran and London. The EU Council announced on Monday that the bloc had imposed sanctions on three Iranian airlines, four companies and seven individuals for their alleged role in the supply of Iranian missiles and drones to Russia amid the country’s ongoing war with Ukraine.
The Iranian Foreign Ministry has condemned the sanctions, saying they have been based on “false and baseless pretexts.” Hungarian ambassador to Tehran, whose country has the rotating presidency of the Council of European Union (EU), was summoned to the Ministry on Tuesday to be informed of Iran’s strong protest to the sanctions.
Giola Peto was told by the Ministry that Iran views EU’s decision to resort to illegal methods like imposing sanctions as totally unacceptable.
The Ministry said in a statement afterwards that Iran has been involved in legal defense cooperation with other states as part of efforts to protect its interests and security.
