Zionist Regime's Attacks Are a Clear Aggression Against Iranian Territory

TEHRAN (Defapress) - Seyed Abbas Araghchi, the country's Foreign Minister, stated in a meeting with foreign ambassadors residing in Tehran, "Today, I will provide explanations regarding the aggressions of the Zionist regime against the Islamic Republic of Iran. The Israeli regime's attacks against targets in Iran began without any preamble or prior context, which constitutes a blatant aggression against Iranian territory."

Araghchi added, "During these aggressions, various targets were attacked, most notably the Natanz nuclear facility, in addition to some targets within Tehran. Furthermore, attacks on residential areas have led to the martyrdom of many ordinary people in Tehran and various cities."

The Foreign Minister continued, "These martyrs include many families, university professors, nuclear scientists, and military commanders who were not engaged in war and were in their homes. This is while we were in the midst of nuclear negotiations with the United States, and the sixth round of talks was supposed to be held today in Muscat."

He noted, "The 'Israeli' regime sets no limits for itself in violating international laws. You all witnessed in the Gaza war that not only innocent Palestinian people in Gaza were killed, but human rights, humanitarian law, and international law were also killed in Gaza."

Araghchi further stated, "This time, the Zionist regime crossed a new red line in international law, which was the attack on a nuclear facility. This is considered a significant violation and a major transgression under international law, prohibited under all circumstances, and unfortunately, it has been met with indifference by the Security Council."

The Foreign Minister declared, "Of course, many countries, especially those in the region, condemned the Zionist regime's aggression against the Islamic Republic of Iran, particularly against nuclear facilities. I thank and appreciate all the esteemed ambassadors present here whose countries condemned this aggression."

He explained, "However, there were countries in Europe that claimed to be civilized and adhere to international law, but instead of condemning Israel, they effectively condemned Iran for being subjected to aggression."

Araghchi clarified, "In response to these attacks, we reacted, and our reaction is based on the principle of self-defense, consistent with an accepted principle in international relations. It is the legitimate right of any country to defend itself against aggression, and this is what our armed forces began two nights ago, and last night you witnessed its newer dimensions, and it will continue."

The Foreign Minister added, "Our intention behind the missile attacks on military and economic targets in the occupied Palestinian territories is solely self-defense and confronting aggression. On the first night, we only considered military targets, but because the 'Israeli' regime targeted economic objectives yesterday, hitting the Tehran refinery and some areas in Asaluyeh, we also targeted economic objectives and refineries in the Zionist regime starting last night."

He continued, "The attack on Asaluyeh yesterday was a blatant aggression and a very dangerous act. Dragging the scene of conflict into the Persian Gulf region is a major strategic mistake, likely carried out deliberately and intentionally, aiming to extend the war beyond Iranian territory."

Araghchi pointed out, "The Persian Gulf region is a very sensitive and complex area, and any military development there could involve the entire region and even the entire world. This is an action that the Zionist regime started yesterday, and we hope that the international community will act as soon as possible to stop these crimes and aggressions."

In another part of his speech, the Foreign Minister added, "The Islamic Republic of Iran will strongly continue its legitimate self-defense, and our armed forces will perform their duties with authority."

He stated, "Regarding the attack on the Natanz nuclear facility, I requested the Director-General of the International Atomic Energy Agency to hold an emergency meeting on this matter, which will take place on Monday. We hope that a strong condemnation of the Zionist regime for this egregious violation of international law and the attack on nuclear facilities will be issued by the Board of Governors."

Araghchi emphasized, "I request the esteemed ambassadors whose countries are members of the IAEA Board of Governors to convey to their capitals that our expectation and the expectation of the international community is a strong condemnation of the attack on nuclear facilities, and even punishment for the Zionist regime for this action. This is perhaps the last red line of international law that the Zionist regime has crossed, and if the international community remains indifferent to these red lines, its consequences will undoubtedly affect all other countries."

The Foreign Minister stated, "In our view, the aggression of the Israeli regime against the Islamic Republic of Iran could never have happened without the agreement and support of the United States. We have irrefutable evidence of the support of US forces in the region and US bases in the region for the attacks by the military forces of the Zionist regime."

He explained, "We have carefully monitored and continue to monitor, and we have much evidence of how US forces assisted the Zionist regime. But more important than our evidence are the statements of the US President, who explicitly declared his support in his tweets yesterday and in interviews he conducted, stating that it would not have been possible without American equipment and explicitly saying that there are next stages. Therefore, from our perspective, the United States is a partner in these attacks and must accept its responsibility."

Araghchi clarified, "Of course, in response to the Zionist regime's attacks, we focused on targets within the Zionist regime. We do not seek to expand this war unless it is imposed upon us."

The Foreign Minister added, "We fundamentally did not want this war and were engaged in diplomacy regarding our nuclear program, but this aggression was imposed on us. We are defending ourselves, and this defense is completely legitimate, and we are defending ourselves with authority, and this defense is in response to this aggression. Therefore, if this aggression stops, our reactions will also stop."

He continued, "We were supposed to have the sixth round of nuclear negotiations in Muscat today. As I have repeatedly stated, we are confident about the peaceful nature of our nuclear program and have no problem demonstrating this trust to the whole world, just as we did in the nuclear agreement in 2015."

Araghchi noted, "We are ready for any agreement aimed at preventing this from having nuclear weapons. Because this is our belief and doctrine based on the prohibition and sanctity of nuclear weapons. But if the goal of the agreement is to deprive Iran of its nuclear rights, naturally, we are not ready for such an agreement."

The Foreign Minister added, "The American side had given us a proposal in the last round that had problems and was unacceptable to us. We had conveyed our views and prepared a counter-proposal to present at today's meeting. In our opinion, our proposal could have opened the way for an agreement, and it is completely clear that the Israeli regime does not want any agreement on the nuclear issue, does not want negotiations, does not want diplomacy, and the aggression against Iran in the midst of nuclear negotiations indicates the Israeli regime's opposition to any negotiations."

He recalled, "You remember that 'Israel' has always tried to prevent negotiations by carrying out assassinations, sabotage, or various actions. I remember that in the spring of 2021, when we were negotiating in Vienna about reviving the JCPOA, in the middle of the negotiations, Israel carried out an act of sabotage at the Natanz enrichment facility, and the power infrastructure of that center was exploded, and due to the power outage, many centrifuges faced problems at that time, and all their efforts were to stop the negotiations with this act."

Araghchi added, "At that time, we announced that we would increase our enrichment to 60%. The fact that the Islamic Republic of Iran began enriching at the 60% level was in response to that regime's act of sabotage in Natanz, and then all damaged centrifuges in Natanz were replaced with more powerful centrifuges."

The Foreign Minister continued, "Now, what has been done is precisely to undermine diplomacy and negotiation, and we regret that the US government has cooperated with this action. We have received messages from the US through various channels over the past two days that the US has not and will not be involved in this attack, but we do not believe this US claim, and we have evidence that shows the opposite."

He noted, "Of course, if they truly have such a claim, it would be good for them to state it explicitly and publicly; a private message is not enough. The US government needs to clearly state its position and explicitly condemn the attack on nuclear facilities. This act is condemned under international law, and our expectation is that the US government, for the sake of its good faith regarding nuclear weapons, condemns the attack on a peaceful nuclear facility and explicitly withdraws itself from this conflict and declares it."

Araghchi concluded, "I hope that the international community will pay sufficient attention to this issue and stand against the crimes and aggressions of Israel and Israel's crossing of all principles and foundations of international law and confront it, as this is the best way to establish peace in the region and in the world."