Iran Calls on UN to Counter Nuclear Threats

Speaking at a high-level general debate of the UN General Assembly marking and promoting the International Day Against Nuclear Tests, Iran’s permanent representative emphasized the need to firmly confront all nuclear risks, whether arising from tests, threats, or attacks.

According to Rokna, the full text of the speech by Amir Saeed Iravani, Iran’s ambassador and representative to the UN, is as follows:

“I would like, like other delegations, to commend Kazakhstan for its initiative in promoting the International Day Against Nuclear Tests.

This day was established to recall the catastrophic consequences of nuclear tests on human health, the environment, and international peace and security—consequences that leave a lasting legacy for humanity and nature across generations.

While commemorating the victims of past nuclear tests, we must simultaneously take action to protect current and future generations from emerging nuclear threats. Today, dangers that were previously associated with nuclear tests are re-emerging in another form through deliberate attacks on nuclear facilities under safeguards.

The threats posed by nuclear testing are not limited to intentional detonations; threats or the use of force against nuclear facilities carry equally serious risks.

The reckless and recent attacks by the Israeli regime and the United States on Iran’s nuclear facilities highlight this urgent concern. These facilities, operating under International Atomic Energy Agency safeguards and solely for peaceful purposes under Article IV of the Nuclear Non-Proliferation Treaty (NPT), were deliberately targeted—a clear violation of international law, including the principles of the UN Charter. Such actions constitute a direct attack on the foundations of multilateralism, undermine trust in disarmament and non-proliferation regimes, and pose a serious threat to international peace and security.

Equally concerning are Israel’s attacks on Iranian cities hosting IMS stations. These illegal actions endanger the safety and integrity of IMS facilities, threaten the lives of technical personnel, and strike at the foundation of the global verification system. By undermining the overall objectives of the Comprehensive Nuclear-Test-Ban Treaty (CTBT), these attacks present a significant obstacle to its effective implementation.

Therefore, the international community must unequivocally condemn these actions, demand accountability from violators of international law, and strengthen legal protections for nuclear facilities, ensuring the inviolability of peaceful nuclear installations and making clear to perpetrators that they cannot claim immunity for such grave violations.

The CTBT embodies the international community’s firm rejection of nuclear testing and acknowledgment of the catastrophic risks posed by nuclear explosions.

However, condemning nuclear tests while ignoring actions that produce similar consequences constitutes hypocrisy and blatant double standards.

Furthermore, such attacks target the NPT itself, which is built upon a delicate balance: non-nuclear-weapon states commit not to pursue nuclear weapons in exchange for two fundamental guarantees—the right to develop peaceful nuclear energy without discrimination and the commitment of nuclear-weapon states to pursue disarmament.

By attacking safeguarded nuclear facilities, perpetrators not only violate an independent state’s inalienable rights under Article IV but also undermine the credibility of the NPT and the trust upon which it is based. If peaceful nuclear facilities cannot be protected from threats or use of force, the guarantees promised by the treaty lose all meaning.

Safeguarding peaceful nuclear use, protecting all nuclear facilities against threats or use of force, and advancing the complete elimination of nuclear weapons are not separate goals; they are mutually dependent and reinforcing. By reaffirming these principles today, we acknowledge that the painful lessons of the past will never be forgotten, and humanity remains steadfast in the pursuit of a world free of nuclear weapons.

The victims of nuclear tests remind us of the tremendous costs of indifference. Now, faced with new threats that risk repeating history in another form, silence would betray their memory. Today, we must stand resolutely against all nuclear dangers—whether from tests, threats, or attacks—and strive unceasingly for a world where nuclear energy serves only human progress and dignity, not destruction.”