Addressing a meeting of the United Nations Security Council themed ‘Security in Middle East and North Africa’ on Monday, he warned about threats of instability around Persian Gulf, saying, “That’s for the same reason that I support mediatory efforts of Kuwait to overcome differences among Arab states in the region.”
“The JCPOA should remain as a valuable section of peace and security, irrespective of the discussions that are being made about Iran’s role in the region,” he said.
On the region as a whole, Guterres recalled that Cold War rivals still found ways to talk to each other and cooperate, indicating that countries in the Middle East and North Africa could pursue a similar path.
Also, the spokesman of the Iranian Ministry of Foreign Affairs said, The Joint Comprehensive Plan of Action (JCPOA) is still strong despite US' pullout from it unilaterally.
'The one that doesn't feel well is [US President] Donald Trump who couldn't stand the JCPOA and quit it, and today everyone except the US is trying to safeguard the deal,' Bahram Qasemi said.
He also urged Council members to find “much-needed consensus and to act with one strong voice”, adding that regional organizations can also contribute to efforts towards preventive diplomacy, mediation and confidence-building.
On May 8, US pulled his country out of the JCPOA, which was achieved in Vienna in 2015 after years of negotiations among Iran and the Group 5+1 (Russia, China, the US, Britain, France and Germany).
Following the US exit, Iran and the remaining parties launched talks to save the accord.
Meanwhile, Leader of the Islamic Revolution Ayatollah Seyed Ali Khamenei has underlined that any decision to keep the JCPOA running without the US should be conditional on “practical guarantees” from the Europeans.
