The United Nations Security Council held a high-stakes meeting to address escalating tensions in the Middle East, during which Iraq and Syria took a strong stance against recent US strikes in their respective territories. The meeting underscored the interconnectedness of crises in the region and the urgent need for international diplomacy to maintain peace and stability.
Iraq’s Deputy Permanent Representative, Abbas Kadhom Obaid Al-Fatlawi, emphasized the significance of preserving the territorial integrity of all states in the region. Al-Fatlawi expressed his concerns about the growing tensions and called for restraint, highlighting Iraq’s efforts to play a stabilizing role in the Middle East.
Al-Fatlawi stressed that the recent American attacks did not align with Iraq’s relationship with the United States, condemning them as “futile and illogical pretexts.” He vehemently rejected any attack on Iraq’s territory, characterizing such actions as violations of sovereignty and security. He urged the Security Council to fulfill its duty in protecting the territorial integrity of all states.
Syria’s UN Ambassador, Koussay Aldahhak, echoed Al-Fatlawi’s sentiments, condemning what he referred to as “flimsy pretexts” put forth by the US administration to justify its repeated attacks. Aldahhak criticized the US’s misinterpretation of the provisions of the UN Charter, particularly Article 51, and attributed the root causes of conflicts, suffering, and instability in the Middle East to what he described as the “wrongful and destructive policies” of the United States.
Aldahhak explicitly cited the US’s unwavering support for the Israeli occupation and the suffering of the Palestinian people as contributing factors to regional instability. He accused successive US administrations of interfering in the internal affairs of other countries, including Syria, and forming military coalitions outside the purview of the United Nations.
Syria firmly rejected the “pretexts and lies” presented by the US administration to justify its aggression, which, in the Ambassador’s view, aimed to protect its regional interests. Aldahhak also decried the use of Member States’ territories for US election campaigns and the display of brute force, undermining the principles of collective security upon which the UN was founded.
