Major world powers at the United Nations Security Council have taken a “short-sighted” and “foolish” view of Iran’s aggression in the Middle East, according to Ambassador Nikki Haley.
“As a council, we’ve adopted a dangerously shortsighted approach,” Haley, the top American diplomat at the U.N., said during a Wednesday meeting. “Iran must be judged in totality of its aggressive, destabilizing, and unlawful behavior. To do otherwise would be foolish.”
Haley remonstrated with the other members of the international body, saying they have ignored Iran’s repeated violations of U.N. Security Council resolutions. The meeting was supposed to be devoted to the revival Israeli-Palestinian peace process, but Haley used it as an early opportunity to advance President Trump’s new strategy on Iran.
“We can’t talk about stability in the Middle East without talking about Iran; that’s because nearly every threat to peace and security in the Middle East is connected to Iran’s outlawed behavior,” she said.
“The United States has now embarked on a course that attempts to address all aspects of Iran’s destructive conduct, not just one aspect. It’s critical that the international community do the same.”
Haley’s success or failure in rallying that cooperation could have a major influence on Trump’s next move regarding Iran. The president denounced the Iran nuclear agreement, known formally as the Joint Comprehensive Plan of Action, but delayed the renewal of economic sanctions that former President Barack Obama waived as part of the deal. That gives Congress time to work on legislation that would put additional pressure on the regime, but a key senator warned that the bill won’t pass without international support.
“A big part of this being successful will be the administration’s efforts diplomacy-wise with our European allies,” Senate Foreign Relations Chairman Bob Corker said Tuesday. “That is something that has got to take place or many of our Democratic colleagues are not going to be willing come along.”
European leaders have been critical of Trump’s decision, arguing he risks provoking a crisis with Iran and discouraging North Korea from having peace talks about their nuclear and ballistic missile programs. Corker, R-Tenn., predicted such critics would relent, eventually.
“I think that they’re going to vent, like they did, and then I think they’re going to as hopefully the admin engages with them they will come along and want to be a part of strengthening the deal,” he told the Washington Examiner.
Haley tried to hasten the process. She argued that Iran’s “most threatening action” — the testing of ballistic missiles that can carry a nuclear warhead — have rendered it a rogue regime as dangerous as North Korea. “If it is wrong for North Korea to do this, why doesn’t that same mentality apply to Iran?” she asked.
But she also noted that the U.N. has acknowledged “a laundry list” of ways that Iran violates key U.N. resolutions pertaining to non-nuclear behavior, such as bans on weapons transfers to terrorists.
“The regime continues to play this council,” Haley said. “Iran hides behind its assertion of technical compliance with the nuclear deal, while it brazenly violates the other limits on its behavior, and we have allowed them to get away with it. This must stop.”
Source » washingtonexaminer