by Jan Strupczewski
BRUSSELS, April 17 (Reuters) – European Union leaders will discuss strengthening sanctions on Iran at their meeting on Wednesday after the Islamic republic’s drone and missile attack on Israel at the weekend last.
This unprecedented attack, and the possibility of an Israeli response, raises fears of a regionalization of the conflict between Israel and Palestinian Hamas, supported by Iran, since the deadly attack carried out by the latter on Israeli soil on October 7.
European leaders have increased calls for restraint in recent days, with German Foreign Minister Annalena Baerbock emphasizing on Wednesday that it was in no one’s interest for the situation in the Middle East to become “unpredictable”.
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In a press release released on Tuesday, the day before the opening of the Brussels summit, the EU said it was ready to adopt new sanctions against Iran, particularly in the area of missile drones.
European leaders will “strongly and unequivocally” condemn the Iranian attack and reaffirm their support for Israel’s security, while calling on all parties to avoid escalation, added the statement seen by Reuters.
The head of European diplomacy, Josep Borrell, indicated that several EU member states had proposed extending the sanctions regime aimed at limiting Iranian drone deliveries to Russia to include the delivery of missiles, as well as deliveries to Iran’s allies in the Middle East.
Some countries also proposed sanctioning the Revolutionary Guards, an elite unit of the Iranian army, but another wanted their participation in the attack against Israel to be confirmed first, said Josep Borrell. (Reporting by Jan Strupczewski, writing by Gabriela Baczynska, French version Alban Kacher, editing by Tangi Salaün)
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