Iran's Ambassador to the United Nations protested the dual approach of the Western member states of the Security Council to weapons of mass destruction.







Majid Takht-Ravanchi made the remarks at an informal Security Council meeting on Friday on maintaining the authority of non-proliferation regimes.

"Non-proliferation of weapons of mass destruction is a humanitarian goal that has been used as a tool of pressure against other countries, and this situation must end," he said.

"Weapons of mass destruction are the most immoral and inhumane weapons ever made by man, and their production and use have been properly banned and the only absolute guarantee against the use of these inhumane weapons is complete destruction and ensuring that they do not develop," he added.

"However, the authority of these regimes and the credibility of the relevant international institutions have been severely challenged and weakened in recent decades," Iranian diplomat noted, adding, "In most cases, this is not done by those seeking to develop weapons of mass destruction, but by those who have exploited non-proliferation regimes to further their own interests."

Referring to the use of the Ba'ath regime in Iraq in a chemical attack on Iran that killed thousands of Iranians and Iraqis, Takht-Ravanchi said, "The Security Council was completely silent, and this behavior was repeated once again when Iraq was attacked by Western countries on the basis of completely false allegations of weapons of mass destruction."

"In recent years, the Security Council has remained silent against some powers that have put severe pressure on Syria by abusing the Chemical Weapons Convention and the Organization for the Prohibition of Chemical Weapons (OPCW) to further their illegitimate interests," he added.

Takht-Ravanchi went on to say, "Until 2016, Iran was under unprecedented UN sanctions only because of a fictitious crisis by some Western powers under the pretext of so-called spreading concerns about Iran's peaceful nuclear program. But the Israeli regime, which produces a variety of weapons of mass destruction and refuses to accede to international treaties, is not being reprimanded by the Security Council because it is backed by the United States."

"The authority of non-proliferation regimes and the credibility of related organizations are not maintained automatically and without regard to these bitter realities, and the only absolute guarantee is the strict application of non-proliferation norms to all, at all times and under all circumstances, and most importantly, without Without abusing these norms or politicizing or discriminating in their implementation as well as the neutrality and professional activity of multilateral institutions," Iranian envoy highlighted.

"Therefore, it is necessary to resist the abuse of non-proliferation norms and related institutions to advance the political intentions of some countries," he said.

"Iran, as a victim of the use of chemical weapons, once again strongly condemns the use of these weapons by anyone, anywhere, under any circumstances, and strongly opposes undermining the authority of the Convention on the Prohibition of Chemical Weapons and the validity of the Organization for the Prohibition of Chemical Weapons. On the contrary, it calls for the balanced, full and non-discriminatory implementation of the Convention and the protection of the authority of the relevant organization," he stressed.