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Iran Denies Providing Ballistic Missiles to Russia

Iranian ballistic missiles are displayed during the ceremony of joining the Armed Forces, in Tehran, Iran, August 22, 2023. Iran's Presidency/WANA (West Asia News Agency)/Handout via Reuters
Iranian ballistic missiles are displayed during the ceremony of joining the Armed Forces, in Tehran, Iran, August 22, 2023. Iran's Presidency/WANA (West Asia News Agency)/Handout via Reuters
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Iran Denies Providing Ballistic Missiles to Russia

Iranian ballistic missiles are displayed during the ceremony of joining the Armed Forces, in Tehran, Iran, August 22, 2023. Iran's Presidency/WANA (West Asia News Agency)/Handout via Reuters
Iranian ballistic missiles are displayed during the ceremony of joining the Armed Forces, in Tehran, Iran, August 22, 2023. Iran's Presidency/WANA (West Asia News Agency)/Handout via Reuters

Iran denied on Friday that it had provided ballistic missiles to Russia, after the United States said there would be a severe international response to any such move.

Earlier this week Reuters, citing six sources, reported that Iran had provided Russia with a large number of powerful surface-to-surface ballistic weapons to Russia, deepening military cooperation between the two US-sanctioned nations.

The Biden administration warned Iran on Thursday of a "swift and severe" response from the international community if Tehran had provided ballistic missiles to Russia.

"Despite no legal restrictions on ballistic missile sales, Iran is morally obligated to refrain from weapon transactions during the Russia-Ukraine conflict to prevent fueling the war," Iran's mission to the United Nations said on the X platform.

"(That) is rooted in Iran's adherence to international law and the UN Charter," it added.

UN Security Council restrictions on Iran's export of some missiles, drones and other technologies expired in October.

However, the United States and the European Union retained sanctions on Iran's ballistic missile program amid concerns over exports of weapons to its proxies in the Middle East and to Russia.

Iran initially denied supplying drones to Russia but months later said it had provided a small number before Moscow launched its invasion of Ukraine on Feb. 24, 2022.

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Trudeau Says He Will Step Down after New Liberal Party Leader Named

Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau speaks during a news conference at Rideau Cottage in Ottawa, Canada on January 6, 2025. (AFP)
Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau speaks during a news conference at Rideau Cottage in Ottawa, Canada on January 6, 2025. (AFP)
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Trudeau Says He Will Step Down after New Liberal Party Leader Named

Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau speaks during a news conference at Rideau Cottage in Ottawa, Canada on January 6, 2025. (AFP)
Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau speaks during a news conference at Rideau Cottage in Ottawa, Canada on January 6, 2025. (AFP)

Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau announced on Monday that he will step down as leader of the ruling Liberals after nine years in office but will stay on in his post until the party chooses a replacement.

Trudeau, under heavy pressure from Liberal legislators to quit amid polls showing the party will be crushed at the next election, said at a news conference that parliament would be suspended until March 24.

That means an election is unlikely to be held before May and Trudeau will still be prime minister when US President-elect Donald Trump - who has threatened tariffs that would cripple Canada's economy - takes office on Jan. 20.

"This country deserves a real choice in the next election, and it has become clear to me that if I'm having to fight internal battles, I cannot be the best option in that election," Trudeau said.

Trudeau, 53, took office in November 2015 and won reelection twice, becoming one of Canada's longest-serving prime ministers.

But his popularity started dipping two years ago amid public anger over high prices and a housing shortage, and his fortunes never recovered.

Polls show the Liberals will badly lose to the official opposition Conservatives in an election that must be held by late October, regardless of who the leader is.

Parliament was due to resume on Jan. 27 and opposition parties had vowed to bring down the government as soon as they could, most likely at the end of March. But if parliament does not return until March 24, the earliest they could present a non-confidence motion would be some time in May.

Trudeau said he had asked Canada's Governor General, the representative of King Charles in the country, to prorogue parliament and she had granted that request.

Trudeau had until recently been able to fend off Liberal legislators worried about the poor showing in polls and the loss of safe seats in two special elections last year.

But calls for him to step aside have soared since last month, when he tried to demote Finance Minister Chrystia Freeland, one of his closest cabinet allies, after she pushed back against his proposals for more spending.

Freeland quit instead and penned a letter accusing Trudeau of "political gimmicks" rather than focusing on what was best for the country.

"Removing me from the equation as the leader who will fight the next election for the Liberal Party should also decrease the level of polarization that we're seeing right now in the House and in Canadian politics," Trudeau said.

The Conservatives are led by Pierre Poilievre, a career politician who rose to prominence in early 2022 when he supported truck drivers who took over the center of Ottawa as part of a protest against COVID-19 vaccine mandates.