EU foreign policy chief Josep Borrell has said that Brussels was starting work on expanding sanctions against Iran after Tehran's attack on Israel, ahead of two day European leaders' summit that gets underway in the Belgian capital this Wednesday.
Speaking after an emergency online meeting of EU foreign ministers on Tuesday, Borrell said the bloc would look to toughen measures against Iran's supplies of weaponry – including drones – to Russia and proxy groups around the Middle East.
"Some member states propose the adoption of expanded restrictive measures against Iran," Borrell said.
The EU's top diplomat said he was requesting his service "start the necessary work related to the sanctions".
EU foreign ministers held urgent talks after Iran's unprecedented weekend drone and missile onslaught against Israel, which caused little damage.
I chaired the extraordinary EU #FAC following the Iranian attacks against Israel.
— Josep Borrell Fontelles (@JosepBorrellF) April 16, 2024
We were united in:
- condemning the attacks
- committing to Israeli security
- preventing an escalation & calling all actors to restraint
- increasing sanctions to Iran
- not forgetting Gaza.
🧵1/4
'Move away from the abyss'
Their meeting came on the eve of a two-day EU leaders' summit in Brussels, during which the dangerous escalation in the Middle East will loom large on the agenda.
Tehran's first-ever direct assault on Israeli soil came in response to a deadly attack on its consulate in Damascus widely blamed on Israel.
Borrell said that EU countries roundly reiterated their condemnation of Iran's attack and backed Israel's right to self-defence.
"We have to move away from the edge of the abyss," Borrell said.
Posting on social media, Israeli Foreign Minister Israel Katz welcomed the "positive trend towards the adoption of sanctions against Iran".
The EU has already imposed sanctions on Iran for supplying drones to Russia for its war in Ukraine and has threatened to punish Tehran if it provides missiles to Moscow.
Borrell said that some member states had raised the possibility of adding Iran's Revolutionary Guards to the EU's terrorist blacklist, but he noted this first required a legal ruling in a member state.
