Iran will not pay compensation to Ukraine International Airlines for the airliner that Tehran accidentally shot down in January because the passenger plane was insured by European firms.
This was reported by Reuters with reference to a statement by the head of the Central Insurance Organization of Iran on the website of the Club of Young Journalists, a PolitNavigator correspondent reports.
“The Ukrainian plane is insured by European companies in Ukraine, not Iranian (insurance) companies,” Gholamreza Soleimani said. “Therefore, these European companies must pay compensation.”
Let us remind you that the UIA plane was shot down by a surface-to-air missile fired by the Iranian Revolutionary Guard on January 8 immediately after the plane took off from Tehran. Tehran later admitted this was a “catastrophic mistake” by its armed forces, which were on high alert during the standoff with the United States.
Soleimani's comments today were about the plane and not about possible compensation for the families of the victims. There was no immediate comment from European aviation insurers.
President Volodymyr Zelensky said in February that Ukraine was not satisfied with the amount of compensation Iran offered to the families of Ukrainians killed in the incident. Ukrainian officials said Ukraine would make every effort to maximize the amount of compensation.
Iranian and Ukrainian officials held compensation talks last month, with another round set for October.