Ambassador Kelly Craft
Permanent Representative
U.S. Mission to the United Nations
New York, New York
August 12, 2020
Statement on the Introduction of a U.S. Resolution Extending the Iran Arms Embargo
Today the United States introduced a draft Security Council resolution to extend the existing embargo on conventional weapons sales to and from Iran. The resolution introduced by the United States follows months of active American diplomacy. It is a straightforward, common-sense measure requested by countries in the Middle East that have suffered the most as a result of the Iranian regime’s active support for terrorism and mayhem across the region and beyond.
Iran’s actions fuel conflict, chaos, and human suffering on a broad scale. It continues to endanger the lives and livelihoods of millions of innocent men, women, and children by actively supporting proxy groups and terrorist organizations in countries like Syria, Yemen, Lebanon, and Iraq.
It is unimaginable that the UN Security Council would overlook this behavior – verified by the Secretary-General in his recent report on UNSCR 2231 – and unlock Iran’s access to combat aircraft, attack helicopters, warships, tanks, missile systems, and other advanced weapons.
I call upon all Security Council members to wake up to the real-world implications of allowing this arms embargo to lapse. The Security Council’s central purpose is to promote global peace and security. Failure to extend the arms embargo would make a mockery of that sacred responsibility on which the United Nations was created.
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