Envoy Warns Netanyahu against Miscalculation on Iran
TEHRAN (Tasnim) – The deputy Iranian ambassador to the UN reacted to the Israeli prime minister’s Tuesday threats of unilateral move against Iranian nuclear facilities, saying Iran's non-aggressive military doctrine should not be interpreted as weakness in defending the country.
“The Israeli prime minister should not even think of attacking Iran, let alone making plans for such an attack,” said Khodadad Seifi on Tuesday night in New York, minutes after Netanyahu’s UN General Assembly address.
He also asked Netanyahu to once again study both the history of Iran’s commitment to its international responsibilities and Tel Aviv’s disregard for all international conventions, treaties, and laws.
"Contrary to Israel," Seifi stressed "Iran has not invaded any country and will never do so... and its century-long non-aggressive policies should not be interpreted as inability in defending the country."
The Israeli prime minister in his address to the 68th UN annual General Assembly accused Iran of trying to make a nuclear bomb and urged other countries to keep up sanctions against Tehran.
"Iran has an inalienable right to peaceful nuclear energy and is fully committed to its nonproliferation obligations," said Seifi, adding that Israel, unlike Iran, has not signed the nonproliferation treaty. "Israel is the only one in the region that possesses all types of weapons of mass destruction but is not party to any of the treaties banning them."
In his address to the UN General Assembly, Iran President Hassan Rouhani called for a conference to create a zone free of nuclear weapons or any weapons of mass destruction in the Middle East without delay. All countries, he said, should participate in the conference.
"Almost four decades of international efforts to establish nuclear weapon-free zones have regrettably failed," he said. "Urgent, practical steps toward the establishment of such a zone are necessary. The international community has to redouble efforts in support of the establishment of this zone."
Israel is believed to possess anywhere from 75 to as many as 400 nuclear weapons, but has always avoided confirming or denying whether it has nuclear weapons.
