Researchers from the UK, the US, and Australia, collaborated with researchers at an Iranian university, which could potentially be “very dangerous” according to experts.
The research focused on the use of drones, unmanned aerial devices (UAVs), and was co-authored by researchers from the University of Southampton, the University of Houston, The University of New South Wales in Sydney, and Sharif University of Technology in Tehran.
Sharif University is currently subject to financial sanctions both by the EU and the UK.
Several experts have criticised the collaboration due to “direct implications […] for military use.”
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Robert Czulda, a professor of international and political studies who has taught at Sharif university before states:
“If you work on drones in an Iranian University, they will be used by the Iranian military.”
After the research was published in 2023, the UK government launched an investigation, following allegations that universities in the UK had collaborated in the research.
Since the publication the University of Southampton has “stopped all formal and informal research collaborations with Iran,” a spokesperson stated.
“Drone and Moon” by Don McCullough is licensed under CC BY 2.0.