Iran rejects UN report that arms 'of Iranian origin' used in Saudi attacks
CGTN

Iran rejected on Friday a United Nations report that said cruise missiles used in attacks on oil facilities and an airport in Saudi Arabia last year were of "Iranian origin," saying it had been drawn up under U.S. and Saudi influence. 

Iran's Foreign Ministry said in a statement carried by official IRNA news agency that "Iran denies allegations by the UN Secretariat that appear to have been made under political pressure from the U.S. and Saudi regimes." 

On Thursday, Western media said that UN Secretary-General Antonio Guterres told the UN Security Council in a recent report that the cruise missiles and drones used in attacks on Saudi oil facilities in 2019 were of "Iranian origin."

A hole in a part of a separator is seen on the ground as workers fix the damage in Aramco's oil separator after a September 14 attack in Abqaiq, Saudi Arabia, September 20, 2019. /AP

A hole in a part of a separator is seen on the ground as workers fix the damage in Aramco's oil separator after a September 14 attack in Abqaiq, Saudi Arabia, September 20, 2019. /AP

"With no doubt, such reports will not help the peace and security of the region," the Iranian Foreign Ministry said. 

"Interestingly, the... report comes at a time when the United States is working to draft a dangerous resolution to extend an arms embargo against Iran," it said. 

Washington has said that it seeks to restore all the lifted international sanctions against Iran if the UN Security Council fails to preserve the UN ban on selling conventional arms to Iran. The embargo is due to expire in October under Tehran's 2015 nuclear deal with six world powers. 

U.S. President Donald Trump withdrew Washington from the deal in 2018 and his administration has been taking a harder line with the United Nations to extend and strengthen the embargo on Iran, saying lifting it would let Tehran acquire weapons that could fuel conflicts in the Middle East. 

U.S. Ambassador to the UN Kelly Craft has said she will circulate a draft resolution to extend the arms embargo on Iran soon. 

Read more: 

Timeline: Is the landmark Iran nuclear deal coming to an end?

Iran warns of nuclear deal 'death' if arms embargo extended

This image provided on September 15, 2019 by the U.S. government and DigitalGlobe shows damage to the infrastructure at Saudi Aramco's Kuirais oil field in Buqyaq, Saudi Arabia. /AP

This image provided on September 15, 2019 by the U.S. government and DigitalGlobe shows damage to the infrastructure at Saudi Aramco's Kuirais oil field in Buqyaq, Saudi Arabia. /AP

"Iran strongly advises the UN Secretariat not to move in the direction of the U.S.-prepared scenario seeking to prevent the removal of (a UN) ban on (selling conventional) arms to Iran," read the statement. 

Iranian Foreign Minister Mohammad Javad Zarif said on Thursday that the United States has no right to "abuse" the UN to vilify Iran. 

According to a May 22 letter by Guterres, Iran's UN envoy said: "It has not been the policy of Iran to export weapons in violation of relevant arms embargoes of the Security Council" and that it will "continue to actively cooperate with the United Nations in this regard."

China, Russia, EU oppose reimposing arms embargo on Iran

Chinese State Councilor and Foreign Minister Wang Yi recently slammed U.S. threats to extend the arms embargo on Iran, saying it violates the United Nations Security Council Resolution 2231 that endorses the Iran nuclear deal. 

Wang and Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov wrote to the 15-member Security Council and the UN chief in separate letters as the United States threatens to spark a so-called sanctions snapback under the 2015 deal, even though Washington has already quit the accord.

In this photo released by the Atomic Energy Organization of Iran, technicians work at the Arak heavy water reactor's secondary circuit, near Arak, Iran, December 23, 2019. /AP

In this photo released by the Atomic Energy Organization of Iran, technicians work at the Arak heavy water reactor's secondary circuit, near Arak, Iran, December 23, 2019. /AP

"The United States, no longer a participant to the JCPOA after walking away from it, has no right to demand the Security Council invoke a snapback," Wang wrote in his June 7 letter. 

Wang said China will work with all relevant parties to safeguard the authority of the United Nations Security Council Resolution 2231 and the effectiveness of the Joint Comprehensive Plan of Action (JCPOA) on the Iranian nuclear issue. 

Lavrov criticized the U.S. for being "ridiculous and irresponsible" in his letter. 

Joining China and Russia in rejecting the U.S. move, the European Union's top diplomat, Josep Borrell, said Tuesday that the United States can't use its former membership of the pact to try to impose a permanent arms embargo on the Islamic Republic. 

(With input from Reuters, Xinhua)

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