Iran will terminate the “Cairo Agreement” with the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) as a first step if terminated UN Security Council resolutions are restored, a top Iranian diplomat announced on Thursday. The warning was delivered by Kazem Gharibabadi, Iran’s Deputy Foreign Minister for Legal and International Affairs, following a briefing with non-permanent members of the UN Security Council.
Gharibabadi stated that Iran will “show a proper reaction to any hostile act, such as the return of terminated Security Council resolutions.” He specified that “as a first measure, the Cairo understanding between Iran and the Agency will be terminated.”
The statement came after a meeting at the UN headquarters where Gharibabadi briefed representatives from ten non-permanent UNSC member states on the latest developments concerning Resolution 2231. He also detailed the outcomes of intensive diplomatic talks between the Iranian delegation and the E3 (France, Germany, UK) and the European Union on the sidelines of the UN General Assembly.
According to Gharibabadi, he characterized recent claims by American and European officials of their commitment to diplomacy as “unrealistic and disingenuous,” especially in light of Iran’s own efforts to keep the diplomatic path open in recent weeks.
“In this meeting, I emphasized the firm commitment of the Islamic Republic of Iran to a diplomatic solution,” Gharibabadi said. He highlighted that the draft resolution proposed by Russia and China for a technical extension of Resolution 2231 represents “the last chance to prevent the escalation of self-made Euro-American tensions.”
The Deputy Foreign Minister put the onus on the Security Council members, stating they face a heavy responsibility. “They must either demonstrate their recommitment to diplomacy and fulfill their duty to maintain international peace and security, or they must accept full responsibility for disrupting the diplomatic path and its consequences,” he asserted.
