Abbas Araghchi slumps Trump’s warning: Iran urges UN to respond to Trump’s ‘reckless’ threats over protests
Al Jazeera, BBC :
Iran’s United Nations ambassador Amir Saeed Iravani has written to the UN secretary-general and the president of the UN Security Council (UNSC), urging them to condemn “unlawful threats” towards Tehran from United States President Donald Trump amid ongoing protests in the country.
The letter sent on Friday came hours after Trump said the US was “locked and loaded and ready to go” if any more protesters were killed in the ongoing demonstrations in Iran over the cost of living.
Iravani called on UN chief Antonio Guterres and members of the UNSC to “unequivocally and firmly condemn” Trump’s “reckless and provocative statements”, describing them as a “serious violation” of the UN Charter and international law.
“Any attempt to incite, encourage or legitimise internal unrest as a pretext for external pressure or military intervention is a gross violation of the sovereignty, political independence and territorial integrity of the Islamic Republic of Iran,” Iravani said in the letter, which was published in full by the IRNA state news agency.
The letter added that Iran’s government “reiterates its inherent right to defend its sovereignty” and that it will “exercise its rights in a decisive and proportionate manner”.
“The United States of America bears full responsibility for any consequences arising from these illegal threats and any subsequent escalation of tensions,” Iravani added.
Meanwhile, BBC reports says Donald Trump’s warning that the US will intervene if peaceful protesters are killed was “reckless and dangerous”, Iran’s foreign minister has said.
Abbas Araghchi’s comments came after the US president said Washington “will come to their rescue” of demonstrators taking part in protests over Iran’s economy, writing in a brief social media post: “We are locked and loaded and ready to go.”
Araghchi indicated Iran’s armed forces were on standby and “know exactly where to aim” in the event of an attack.
At least eight people are reported to have died during the week-long protests, as of Saturday morning.
Trump wrote on Friday: “If Iran shots [sic] and violently kills peaceful protesters, which is their custom, the United States of America will come to their rescue.”
The US president did not specify what action Washington might take. Previously, it has carried out strikes on Iran’s nuclear sites, which elicited a retaliatory strike on a US base in Qatar.
“Given President Trump’s deployment of the National Guard within US borders, he of all people should know that criminal attacks on public property cannot be tolerated,” Araghchi wrote on X.
Iran would “forcefully reject any interference in their internal affairs”, he added.
Meanwhile, an Iranian police spokesman said officers would not allow what he called “enemies” to turn “unrest into chaos”.