AhlulBayt News Agency: Iran’s Deputy Foreign Minister for Legal and International Affairs, Kazem Gharibabadi, has emphasized the necessity of complete disarmament and the non-discriminatory implementation of the Non-Proliferation Treaty (NPT), adding that Israel’s nuclear arsenal is the primary obstacle to establishing a Middle East free of nuclear weapons.
Speaking at the high-level segment of the Conference on Disarmament in Geneva, Switzerland, on Monday, Gharibabadi highlighted the principled positions of the Islamic Republic of Iran, stressing the need for the international community to return to effective multilateralism, achieve genuine disarmament, and ensure unconditional respect for international law.
Addressing the complex and concerning international security situation, he 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 these 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.
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.
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.
Gharibabadi also reiterated the longstanding initiative of the Islamic Republic of Iran to establish a zone free of nuclear and other weapons of mass destruction in the Middle East, 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.
He 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.
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