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Deputy FM raps Israel’s nuclear arsenal as main obstacle to nuke-free Mideast
‘US is main driver behind collapse of international legal order’
Speaking at the high-level segment of the Conference on Disarmament in Geneva, Switzerland, Kazem Gharibabadi highlighted Iran’s principled positions and stressed the need for the international community to return to effective multilateralism, achieve genuine disarmament, and ensure unconditional respect for international law.
Gharibabadi reiterated the Islamic Republic’s longstanding initiative to establish a zone free of nuclear and other weapons of mass destruction in the West Asian region, emphasizing that achieving this goal requires universal adherence to the NPT and the placement of all nuclear facilities in the region under comprehensive International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) safeguards.
The deputy foreign minister pointed out that the Israeli regime’s possession of weapons of mass destruction and its repeated nuclear threats pose a significant obstacle to realizing this objective.
Israel is estimated to possess 200 to 400 nuclear warheads in its arsenal, making it the sole possessor of non-conventional arms in West Asia.
The occupying regime has refused to either allow inspections of its nuclear sites or sign the NPT.
Gharibabadi described the NPT as the cornerstone of the global non-proliferation and disarmament regime, affirming that the Islamic Republic of Iran has always adhered to its obligations under the treaty.
He stressed that Iran’s right to peaceful nuclear energy is an inherent and non-negotiable right guaranteed under international law, which cannot be suspended, revoked, or made a precondition for negotiations.
“Iran has always been committed to its obligations under the NPT.” the Iranian official said.
"The Islamic Republic does not have nuclear weapons, has never sought to acquire them, and has no intention of doing so. Iran’s nuclear program is entirely peaceful and is guided by the country’s legal obligations and its ideological and moral principles, which reject WMDs.”
Gharibabadi also pointed out that the ongoing armed conflicts, persistent occupation, and crimes committed by the Israeli regime in the West Asia region, along with the erosion of the fundamental principles of the UN Charter, pose serious challenges to global peace and security.
The deputy foreign minister emphasized that nuclear weapons pose the greatest threat to humanity and civilization, noting that the ongoing reliance of some countries on such weapons within their security doctrines stands in stark contrast to their international obligations and undermines the ethical and legal foundations of the non-proliferation regime.
He called for an immediate, irreversible, and verifiable commitment from all possessors of such weapons to the complete destruction of their nuclear arsenals.
Firmly rejecting any allegations of military dimensions to Iran’s nuclear program, the deputy foreign minister said that the Islamic Republic neither possesses nuclear weapons, nor has it sought to acquire them, nor does it have any such intention.
Iran’s nuclear program is entirely peaceful and is guided by the country’s legal obligations and its ideological and ethical principles, which reject weapons of mass destruction, he added.
Elsewhere, Speaking at a high-level meeting of the Group of Friends in Defense of the Charter of the United Nations on the sidelines of the UN Human Rights Council session in Geneva, Gharibabadi said the United States is the main factor behind the collapse of the international order based on international law, warning against Washington’s systematic disregard for core legal principles.
The deputy FM cited US military interventions, unilateral coercive economic measures, threats to states’ territorial integrity, and persistent violations of sovereignty and non-interference as evidence of a calculated effort to undermine the existing legal framework.
Gharibabadi also criticized US support for the Israeli regime, saying Washington’s backing, including vetoing draft resolutions aimed at halting the war in Gaza, has enabled war crimes and genocide, emboldening the regime to expand aggression across West Asia, including against Iran’s sovereign territory.