US-Israeli aggression against Iran threatens nuclear nonproliferation regime: Russian diplomat

The unprovoked and illegal attacks by the United States and Israel against Iran have dealt a heavy blow to the global nuclear nonproliferation regime and the IAEA safeguards system, Russia’s deputy foreign minister said on Sunday. 

Sergey Ryabkov, speaking at a meeting of the international Trialogueclub in Moscow, condemned the strikes as a cynical attempt to abuse the Non-Proliferation Treaty (NPT) for political ends. 

“The unprovoked, unjustified, and illegal attacks by Israel and the United States on Iran have dealt a heavy blow to the treaty and the IAEA safeguards system,” Ryabkov said.

He described the aggression as “an egregious manifestation of a course aimed at abusing the nuclear nonproliferation regime and the NPT as its cornerstone.” 

Strikes carried out in Israel’s interests

Ryabkov noted that the attacks were conducted primarily in the interests of Israel, an entity that has historically ignored the NPT. 
“Israel has reserved the right to level accusations regarding nonproliferation obligations against other countries,” he said. 

He also pointed out that the United States, which supported the aggression, was one of the founding fathers of the NPT and remains one of its depositories. 

“The cynicism of the situation lies in the fact that the Israeli-US attacks on Iran were carried out under the cover of negotiations,” Ryabkov said. 
Those negotiations, he explained, were meant to coordinate voluntary measures confirming the peaceful nature of Iran’s nuclear program, measures that went beyond NPT requirements. 

The Russian diplomat stressed that the strikes hit not only peaceful nuclear facilities but also civilian infrastructure. 

“Not only peaceful nuclear facilities were bombed, which is absolutely unacceptable by any standard, but also other civilian facilities, including educational and scientific institutions,” he said. 

“Virtually the entire top leadership of the Islamic Republic of Iran was killed,” Ryabkov added. 

The United States and Israel launched their unprovoked military campaign against Iran on February 28, assassinating the late Leader of the Islamic Revolution, Ayatollah Seyyed Ali Khamenei, and striking nuclear sites, schools, hospitals and a synagogue in Tehran. 

Iran’s armed forces responded with 100 waves of retaliatory strikes under Operation True Promise 4, launching hundreds of ballistic and hypersonic missiles, as well as drones, against American military bases across West Asia and Israeli positions throughout the occupied territories. 

A two-week ceasefire, brokered by Pakistan, is currently in place, though tensions remain high over US threats of a naval blockade and Iran’s firm control over the Strait of Hormuz. 

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