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World’s inaction on anti-Iran strikes leads to normalization of aggression: Iran envoy
Iran’s ambassador to international organizations in Vienna once again censured attacks on the country’s nuclear sites by the United States and Israel in June, warning that the international community’s inaction over such strikes would lead to the normalization and repetition of the illegal acts.
Addressing the 69th IAEA General Conference in Geneva on Thursday, Reza Najafi called for Washington and Tel Aviv to be held accountable for their “blatant violation of international law and the non-proliferation regime."
"Today, the international community is facing a very serious issue; a clear message must be sent that illegal attacks on nuclear facilities under the safeguards of the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) are not only a blatant violation of countries’ legitimate rights to the peaceful use of nuclear energy, but also a direct assault on the credibility of the IAEA’s safeguards system."
The Iranian official also pointed to a draft resolution put forward by Tehran and five other nations at the IAEA’s conference, which calls for a ban on any attack or threat against nuclear sites under the IAEA Safeguards, saying that many member states of the IAEA are under pressure and threats from the US not to support the draft resolution.
“A considerable number of IAEA member states, in separate contacts with Iran and other sponsors of the draft resolution, have stated that they are under intense pressure and threats from the United States not to vote in favor of the submitted resolution,” Najafi said.
Meanwhile, the Iranian diplomat said in an interview with IRNA that the United States has threatened the IAEA member states to cast a negative vote or abstain from voting on Iran’s resolution.
"A number of these countries have declared that an ‘abstention’ from this resolution does not reflect their true position, and therefore they have strongly requested Iran, in consultation with the other co-sponsors of the resolution, to defer action on the resolution to next year’s conference."
The resolution follows the US-Israeli aggression against Iran in June, with Tehran warning that the attacks on its safeguarded nuclear facilities have endangered personnel, nuclear material security, the environment, and the credibility of the non-proliferation regime.
Iran’s Fordow, Natanz and Isfahan nuclear facilities were bombed by the US, which joined Israel’s aggression against Iran in June and claimed the lives of nearly 1,100 Iranian ordinary people, high-profile scientists and military forces.