Pompeo: Tehran is the greatest threat to peace and stability in the region; Iran’s response

The US Secretary of State accused the Iranian government for the umpteenth time of being “the greatest current threat to peace and stability in the region.”

In recent hours, officials from the Trump administration have again called for extending international restrictions against Tehran.

Mike Pompeo wrote on his Twitter account that in a UN Security Council meeting, he “condemned the testing of advanced ballistic systems, support for proxy groups in the Middle East, and the unacceptable sabotage and seizure of commercial vessels in the [Persian] Gulf.”

Mr. Pompeo called for extending UN Security Council Resolution 2231. A resolution that was originally issued in approval of the nuclear agreement between the Barack Obama administration, Iran, and five other world powers. The Donald Trump administration withdrew from it last spring due to what it describes as the agreement being “ineffective.”

UN Security Council Resolution 2231 has asked countries worldwide to observe various weapons restrictions in relation to Iran “for a period of five years,” including restrictions on the sale of tanks, heavy artillery, missile systems, and other military weapons.

These sanctions will expire in another 15 months.

US efforts to extend sanctions

The US State Department says that if Resolution 2231 is not extended, individuals like Qasem Soleimani, commander of the Quds Force, will be able to travel freely outside Iran, and Tehran will be able to sell weapons to “proxy terrorist groups.”

The Islamic Republic has rejected accusations of supporting terrorism.

According to Washington, countries like Russia and China will also be able to sell tanks, missiles, and air defense systems to Iran, and such a thing could “initiate a new arms race in the Middle East and lead to greater instability in the region and the world.”

Mike Pompeo, at a Security Council meeting on August 20, asked the international community to prevent “Iran from breaking free and creating new turmoil.”

He said, “The world community must see how much time remains until Iran frees itself from the constraints of these restrictions and embarks on creating new chaos, and what can be done to prevent such a thing.”

Besides Pompeo, Brian Hook also warned on August 20, referring to the end of UN weapons and travel restrictions against Iran next fall, that such a thing is a “threat” to peace and stability in West Asia.

Tehran’s response

Majid Takht-e Ravanchi, Iran’s ambassador to the United Nations, also accused the US on Tuesday of creating instability and undermining security through its military presence in the region. He said, “This country’s interference is evident in almost all other disputes in the region.”

According to Mr. Takht-e Ravanchi, “In addition to America’s illegal withdrawal from the JCPOA, another reason for Middle East instability is the rampant influx of American weapons into the region, which has turned it into a powder keg.”

Hassan Rouhani, President of the Islamic Republic, has also called for the United States’ return to the “JCPOA” as well as UN Security Council Resolution 2231.

The United States, to bring Tehran back to the negotiating table and reach a “comprehensive” agreement, has resorted to extensive sanctions, the most important of which is “reducing Iran’s oil sales to zero.”

Pompeo himself announced on Tuesday that America has succeeded in “removing 2.7 million barrels of Iranian oil from the market.” However, Iranian officials say they will continue selling oil “to any country they want.”

Based on Reuters’ assessment of industry and shipping sources, Iran’s exports of oil and gas condensates in July reached 120,000 barrels per day combined. In May of the previous year, when America withdrew from the JCPOA, this figure was around 2.8 million barrels.

Source: Radio Farda