Iran’s Sanctioned Terror Airlines Still Fly Throughout Europe

In the past few weeks, Russia has used Iranian-made unmanned aerial vehicles (UAVs) to attack Ukrainian forces and destroy U.S.-supplied military equipment. The three Iranian airlines that flew those UAVs to Russia—Mahan Air, Iran Air, and Qeshm Air—also operate commercial flights to European airports. By allowing these flights, even as NATO arms Ukraine to repel Russia’s illegal invasion, several alliance members, namely the United Kingdom, France, Germany, Spain, Italy, the Netherlands, Bulgaria, and Turkey, are enabling a revenue stream that facilitates the transport of Iranian drones to Russia. The United States should impose additional sanctions on these Iranian airlines as well as strongly push European and other countries to follow suit.