US nukes threaten international peace

Iran's Permanent Representative to the Executive Council of the Organization for the Prohibition of Chemical Weapons (OPCW) Kazem Gharibabadi

Source: Press TV
http://www.presstv.ir/detail/197564.html

An Iranian official says the deployment of US nuclear weapons in Europe threatens the security and safety of host countries and endangers international peace.

The deployment of US nuclear weapons in the territory of some European countries violates the Chemical Weapons Convention (CWC), Iran's Permanent Representative to the Executive Council of the Organization for the Prohibition of Chemical Weapons (OPCW) Kazem Gharibabadi said.

He made the remarks at the “4th Annual International Conference Nuclear Dilemmas: Present and Future” at The Hague.

Gharibabadi advised the Western countries to focus on real threats that endanger international peace and security, such as Israel's nuclear weapons, instead of creating false ones.

“It is surprising that in the sensitive region of Middle East, while Israel is not a party to any international disarmament or arms control treaties and has an arsenal of weapons of mass destruction including nuclear ones, it is immune to any criticism,” the Iranian official said.

Israel, widely believed to be the sole possessor of a nuclear arsenal in the Middle East with over 200 undeclared nuclear warheads, pursues the policy of "deliberate ambiguity" on its nuclear program.

Tel Aviv has rejected global demands to join the Non-Proliferation Treaty (NPT) and does not allow inspections by the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) to observe its controversial nuclear program.

“How can the countries that advocate disarmament and the non-proliferation of nuclear weapons close their eyes to this obvious threat?” Gharibabadi pointed out.

He stressed the peaceful nature of Iran's nuclear activities and said, “No evidence of the existence of a program to build nuclear weapons has been found in Iran.”

The US and its allies accuse Iran of developing a military nuclear program. In June 2009, the UN Security Council imposed a fourth round of sanctions against Iran's financial and military sectors under Western pressure.

Iranian officials have repeatedly refuted the allegations, arguing that as a signatory to the NPT and a member of the IAEA, Tehran has the right to use peaceful nuclear technology.