NEW YORK: US Secretary of State Mike Pompeo threatened to seek to reimpose UN sanctions on Iran if the UN Security Council does not approve a resolution that would indefinitely extend the arms embargo on Tehran, which is set to expire in October.
Pompeo told a news conference at the State Department in Washington on Wednesday that without extending the arms embargo, “Iran will be able to purchase advanced weapons systems and become an arms dealer of choice for terrorists and rogue regimes all throughout the world. This is unacceptable.”
He spoke ahead of a closed video briefing to Security Council members Wednesday afternoon on the US draft resolution to maintain the arms embargo by US Special Representative for Iran Brian Hook and US Ambassador Kelly Craft.
Tensions between Iran and the US have escalated since the Trump administration withdrew from the 2015 nuclear deal between Tehran and six major powers in 2018 and reimposed crippling US sanctions.
A year ago, the US sent thousands more troops, long-range bombers and an aircraft carrier to the Middle East in response to what it called a growing threat of Iranian attacks on US interests in the region.
The five other powers that signed the nuclear deal — Russia, China, UK, France and Germany — remain committed to it, saying the agreement is key to continuing inspections by the International Atomic Energy Agency and preventing Iran from pursuing nuclear weapons.
Lifting the arms embargo is part of the 2015 Security Council resolution endorsing the nuclear agreement. The Security Council is scheduled to discuss the resolution’s implementation on June 30.
Calling Iran “the leading state sponsor of terror,” Pompeo said the US focus is to work with the Security Council to pass the resolution.
“But, in the event that doesn’t happen, I would remind the world that the Obama administration’s officials said very clearly that the United States has the unilateral ability to snap back sanctions into place,” he said.
The 2015 nuclear deal includes a “snap back” provision which would restore all UN sanctions against Iran that had been lifted or eased if the nuclear deal is violated.
The State Department said that in his briefing, Hook pointed to Iranian arms transfers and “the full range of Iran’s malign activity, including its September 2019 direct attack on Saudi Arabia,” which violate current restrictions. Drone strikes hit two Saudi oil installations on Sept. 14, which the US blamed on Iran.
Russia’s UN Ambassador Vassily Nebenzia has made clear Moscow’s opposition to a new arms embargo on Iran and has dismissed as “ridiculous” the possibility of the Trump administration trying to use the “snap back” provision.
Nebenzia said the US pulled out of the agreement and “they have no right” to use any of its provisions.
But Pompeo and Craft insist the resolution makes clear the US retains to right to use the “snap back” provision.
Diplomats said that at Wednesday’s closed briefing there was an exchange of views with the US on one side and Russia on the other.
Some Western governments privately fear that maintaining an arms embargo will lead Iran to oust IAEA inspectors and move ahead on developing nuclear weapons.
The latest report by IAEA said Iran has continued to increase its stockpiles of low-enriched uranium in violation of the 2015 nuclear deal.
The nuclear agreement promised Iran economic incentives in return for curbs on its nuclear program, which Tehran said it hasn’t received, especially since the US withdrawal in 2018. Iran has since slowly and openly violated the nuclear restrictions to try and pressure the remaining nations in the agreement to increase incentives to offset the economy-crippling US sanctions.
The draft US resolution, obtained by The Associated Press, would ban Iran from supplying, selling or transferring any arms or related material from its territory after the embargo expires on Oct. 18.
It would also ban the other 192 UN member states from buying Iranian weapons or allowing their nationals to train, provide financial resources or assistance related “to the supply, sale, transfer, manufacture, maintenance, or use of arms and related materiel” to Iran unless they get Security Council approval at least 30 days in advance.
The draft would authorize all UN member states to inspect cargo entering or transiting through their territory at airports, seaports and free trade zones from Iran or heading there if the member state “has reasonable grounds to believe the cargo” contains banned items.
It would also condemn the September 2019 attack against Saudi Arabia “carried out by Iran” and condemn December 2019 attacks against an Iraqi military base in Kirkuk and the US Embassy in Baghdad. And it would deplore “Iran’s transfers of arms to militias and other armed groups in the region” and demand that Iran stop such transfers immediately.
US says if no arms embargo on Iran it will seek UN sanctions
https://arab.news/5egfe
US says if no arms embargo on Iran it will seek UN sanctions
- Lifting the arms embargo is part of the 2015 Security Council resolution endorsing the nuclear agreement
‘Foreign interference’ not behind Syria flareup: Turkiye
ANKARA: Turkiye, which backs militant factions in Syria, rejected Monday any suggestion that “foreign interference” was behind the offensive launched by Islamists in the country’s north.
“It would be a mistake at this time to try to explain the events in Syria by any foreign interference,” Foreign Minister Hakan Fidan said at a joint press conference in Ankara with his Iranian counterpart Abbas Araghchi.
The recent flareup which saw Damascus losing swathes of territory in northwestern Syria, including Aleppo, during a lightning offensive by militants, was due to the government’s failure to engage in dialogue with armed opposition groups, he said.
“The lack of talks between [Damascus] and the opposition has brought the problem to this point,” he said, describing it as “a mistake to ignore the legitimate demands of the opposition.”
“Damascus must reconcile with its own people and the legitimate opposition,” he added.
Turkiye did “not want an escalation of the civil war,” said the minister who told US Secretary of State Antony Blinken in a phone call Sunday that Ankara would support moves “to reduce tension” in Syria.
Araghchi said it was crucial “to protect the achievements of the Astana process” to end Syria’s civil war, which groups Ankara, Moscow and Tehran, and pledged to convene fresh ministerial talks in the Kazakh capital “soon.”
The last such meeting took place in mid-November.
“Syria must not become a center for terrorist groups,” warned Araghchi in reference to the militant factions that staged last week’s attack.
Fidan also said it was “important that terror organizations do not take advantage of the instability” although he was referring to Kurdish-led rebels that Ankara sees as an offshoot of the banned Kurdistan Workers’ Party (PKK). The PKK has led a led a decades-long insurgency against Turkiye.
Turkish troops and Turkiye-backed militant factions control much of northern Syria, and Ankara is concerned that the recent outbreak of fighting could swell the flow of people fleeing across the border.
“We don’t want civilians to be killed or cities bombarded or people being displaced. We want these displaced people to be able to go back. The flow of refugees must be reversed,” he said.
Turkiye is already hosting some 3.2 million Syrian refugees, according to UN data.
Syria’s Bashar Assad on Monday branded the Islamist-led offensive as a bid to redraw the map of the region in line with US interests in a phone call with his Iranian counterpart Masoud Pezeshkian.
Both Iran and Russia, which have backed Assad since Syria’s civil war broke out in 2011, have said they will help Damascus fight back after losing Aleppo, with Tehran confirming it would keep its military advisers in Syria.
Two dead in attack on Sudan displacement camp: activists
- The Zamzam camp, south of the regional capital El-Fasher, was hit by heavy rocket and artillery fire from the RSF on Sunday morning
- Both sides face accusations of war crimes, including targeting civilians, shelling residential areas, and blocking or looting aid
Port Sudan, Sudan: At least two people were killed when Sudan’s paramilitary Rapid Support Forces attacked a camp for displaced people in the North Darfur region, activists said on Monday.
The Zamzam camp, south of the regional capital El-Fasher, was hit by heavy rocket and artillery fire from the RSF on Sunday morning, said the local resistance committee in El-Fasher.
The “indiscriminate” attack killed at least two people and wounded a dozen others, said the committee, one of hundreds of volunteer groups coordinating aid in Sudan.
The northeast African country has been gripped by a war between the regular army and RSF that has killed tens of thousands and displaced more than 11 million since April last year.
Both sides face accusations of war crimes, including targeting civilians, shelling residential areas, and blocking or looting aid.
UN humanitarian chief Tom Fletcher, after visiting Sudan and neighboring Chad last week, called for immediate international action to address the crisis.
“It is a tough situation out there, the biggest humanitarian crisis in the world. And I’ve been talking to local people to host communities,” Fletcher said in a weekend statement.
Nearly 26 million people — about half the population — face the threat of mass starvation in Sudan as both warring sides have been accused of using hunger as a weapon of war.
“These numbers are staggering, and we cannot turn our backs,” Fletcher said.
ICC member states must act against Israeli, US threats: HRW
- International Criminal Court has faced ‘extreme pressure’ since issuing arrest warrants for Netanyahu, Gallant
- Human Rights Watch: ‘Crucial work’ at The Hague must continue ‘without obstruction’
LONDON: International Criminal Court member countries must oppose Israeli and US efforts to undermine the court follows its issuing of arrest warrants against Israeli leaders, Human Rights Watch said on Monday.
The organization released a 24-page report outlining recommendations to member countries ensuring that the ICC receives the “political backing, resources and cooperation” it needs to carry out its mandate.
The world’s top international court has faced “extreme pressure” since issuing the warrants on Nov. 21, HRW said.
Warrants were issued for the arrests of Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, former Defense Minister Yoav Gallant and Mohammed Deif, a Hamas commander.
US lawmakers renewed threats of sanctions against the court and its officials after the warrants were issued.
Liz Evenson, HRW’s international justice director, said ICC warrants “send a critical message that no one is above the law. ICC member countries should make a commitment during their annual meeting (on Dec. 2-7) to take all necessary steps to ensure that the ICC’s crucial work for justice can continue without obstruction.”
HRW warned that US sanctions against the ICC would have “wide-reaching consequences for global justice.”
Legal uncertainty and apprehension for NGOs, consultants and lawyers could arise as a result of sanctions, which are “a tool to be used against those responsible for the most serious crimes, not against those promoting justice,” HRW said.
After the issuing of the warrants, many ICC member countries voiced support for the court’s decision, yet some avoided making explicit commitments to enforcing them.
Hungary’s President Viktor Orban said he would invite Netanyahu to visit his country despite Hungary, an ICC member, being obliged to arrest anyone wanted by The Hague.
The French government last week appeared to claim that Netanyahu enjoys immunity from arrest as Israel is not an ICC member. Judges at The Hague have rejected this view.
Member countries must condemn Israeli and US threats against the court and its supporters, including civil society organizations, NGOs and human rights defenders, HRW said.
The annual meeting should result in “concrete steps” aimed at protecting the court from “coercive measures,” the organization added.
“The ICC needs the support of its member countries to fulfill its ambitious global mandate of delivering justice for the most serious crimes,” Evenson said.
“Member country support needs to be consistent over time and across situations to avoid double standards, and uphold the court’s legitimacy for victims and affected communities.”
Iran says it will keep ‘military advisers’ in Syria
TEHRAN: Iran said on Monday that it plans to keep military advisers in Syria after its ally’s second city Aleppo was overrun by militants in a surprise offensive.
The Islamic republic, which has backed President Bashar Assad since Syria’s civil war broke out in 2011, says it only deploys military advisers in the country at the invitation of Damascus.
“We entered Syria many years ago at the official invitation of the Syrian government, when the Syrian people faced the threat of terrorism,” said foreign ministry spokesman Esmaeil Baqaeil.
“Our military advisers were present in Syria, and they are still present” and would remain in the country “in accordance with the wishes” of its government, he told a news conference in Tehran.
Baqaeil did not specify whether or not Iran would be increasing its forces in Syria in the wake of the lightning militant offensive.
His remarks come a day after Iran’s Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi met with Assad in Damascus to show support for the Syrian president.
Aleppo fell to an Islamist-dominated militant alliance over the course of the past week, according to the Syrian Observatory for Human Rights war monitor.
Syrian and Russian air forces strike Aleppo’s eastern countryside
CAIRO: Syrian and Russian air forces were striking militant-held positions in Aleppo’s eastern countryside, killing and wounding dozens of insurgents, according to a statement from the Syrian Prime Minister’s office on Monday.
Russia said it continues to support Syrian President Bashar al-Assad and is analysing the situation on the ground after Islamist insurgents and other rebel groups seized territory in Syria.
Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov said on Monday Russia would form its position based on unfolding events.
Meanwhile, Kurdish YPG forces began pulling out of areas under their control in the northeastern sector of Aleppo city under a deal with militant forces, sources and a resident said on Monday.
The deal to pull out of Sheikh Maqsoud and Bustan al Basha and other areas in the city allows civilians to leave to areas in northeast Syria under Kurdish control, the sources told Reuters.
