Iran Urges Europe To Lift Sanctions During Heatwave, Offers Air Conditioners

Iran urged European nations to lift sanctions during a severe heatwave, framing the move as a way to “save ordinary Europeans' lives.”

“ANI |Updated:Jul 04, 2026 09:39IST Ankara [Turkiye], July 4 (ANI): Iran suggested European nations to lift their sanctions to save ordinary Europeans' lives”

ANI News

In a post on X, the Iranian Embassy in Turkiye said, “For the sake of protecting your own people, lift the sanctions on Iran.”

ANI News

The embassy added that it is “ready to export a wide range of air conditioners and cooling equipment to Europe,” and said Iran has developed and manufactured its own air conditioners using indigenous technology.

ANI reported that temperatures in Europe hit 40 degree C (104F) across Germany, the Czech Republic and Poland, while France saw days averaging 29.8C (85.6F) and spiking to 44C (111.2F) in one town.

The same ANI account said an estimated 1,000 excess deaths were left behind after days averaging 29.8C (85.6F) gave way to storms.

The heatwave context for Iran’s message included reported illness, deaths and infrastructure collapse across Europe, with transport crumbling as temperatures reached 40 degree C (104F) in Germany, the Czech Republic and Poland.

ANI said a study by World Weather Attribution found that intense heat on this level is now tens to hundreds of times more likely than it was in 2003, and was unheard of 50 years ago.

The Times of India

The Times of India reported that France, the Netherlands and Belgium recorded a combined 3,700 excess deaths during the June heatwave, with authorities cautioning the figures were preliminary and could rise further.

Times of India also said France recorded 2,025 excess deaths during the heatwave and quoted French health minister Stephanie Rist saying there was a particularly sharp increase in deaths among people aged over 45.

The Times of India described the heatwave as lasting from June 20 to June 28 and said it disrupted power generation, damaged infrastructure and put pressure on healthcare systems across several countries.

Iran’s “friendly suggestion” tied the heatwave response to sanctions policy, with the embassy saying it would export cooling equipment “if Europe is ready to help itself.”

“Iran has offered a "friendly suggestion" to Europe to deal with its deadly heatwave saying that it was ready to export air conditioners and cooling equipment if European nations first lift sanctions imposed on Tehran”

The Times of India

The Times of India repeated the embassy’s claim that “despite years of sanctions, Iran has successfully developed and manufactured its own air conditioners using indigenous technology,” and said it has the “expertise” and “production capacity.”

In the same ANI account, the embassy’s post linked the “tragic loss of innocent lives” to “the lack of adequate cooling systems,” and urged Europe to lift sanctions to protect its own people.

The Times of India framed the immediate question as whether European nations should lift sanctions on Iran to address the heatwave crisis.

Separately, the ANI report described the immediate trigger behind the extreme temperatures as a stalled high-pressure system, or a “heat dome,” which traps heat in one concentrated area for days or weeks.