Yisrael Katz

Upon instructions from my Government, I would like to draw your attention to the inflammatory and aggressive statement made by the Israeli Transportation and Intelligence Minister, Yisrael Katz, during his visit to Tokyo on 26 October 2017. In response to a question about Iran, he said: “If international efforts led these days by U.S. President Trump don’t help stop Iran attaining nuclear capabilities, Israel will act militarily by itself”.

Iran has never sought to acquire nuclear weapons and will never do so in the future, as it continues to fully honour its commitment under the Treaty on the Non Proliferation of Nuclear Weapons and the Joint Comprehensive Plan of Action.

Given this backdrop and the fact that the Israel regime is the only non-party to the Treaty on the Non-Proliferation of Nuclear Weapons in the region which possesses nuclear weapons, has unsafeguarded nuclear facilities and activities and rejects all international efforts towards the establishment of a nuclear-weapon-free zone in the Middle East, it is ironic that it not only expresses concern about the Iranian nuclear programme but also continues to threaten this programme, which is exclusively for peaceful purposes.

Earlier, in my letter dated 19 May 2015 (S/2015/353), I drew your attention and the attention of the Security Council to another example of a threat by this regime, namely the speech by the Israeli Defence Minister, Moshe Yaalon, made on 5 May 2015, in which he had threatened to use a nuclear bomb against Iran and to continue killing civilians, including women and children, in Gaza and Lebanon.

The cases above are two out of many cases where the Israelis have demonstrated their planned aggressions against Iran. The Israeli regime has never concealed its aggressive intention and never stopped military threats against my country. Their recurring threats to act militarily against Iran’s peaceful nuclear programme is a flagrant violation of the fundamental principles of international law and Article 2 (4) of the Charter of the United Nations.

The Government of the Islamic Republic of Iran expects the Secretary-General and the Security Council to live up to their Charter obligation by stopping the Israeli threats against my country and condemning such reckless and irresponsible statements.

I should be grateful if you would have the present letter circulated as a document of the Security Council.

Source: UN S/2017/934