Pre-UN meeting: Condemnation of US strikes on Iraq

Shafaq News / The United Nations Security Council held a special session on Tuesday regarding the situation in Iraq, coinciding with harsh statements issued by the Russian and Chinese delegates against the US, following airstrikes in Iraq and Syria last Saturday.

The United Nations Assistance Mission for Iraq (UNAMI) announced that the Security Council would hold a session "regarding the situation in Iraq, at 10:00 a.m. New York time (6:00 p.m. Baghdad time)."

Last week, the US launched airstrikes against 85 targets in four locations in Syria and three others in Iraq, targeting sites belonging to the Iranian Revolutionary Guard (IRGC) and Tehran-affiliated armed factions, according to Washington.

The US has threatened further strikes in response to an attack that targeted a US military base in Jordan near the borders with Syria and Iraq on January 28th.

In this context, some members of the Security Council criticized the US for the airstrikes last week in Syria and Iraq in retaliation for the killing of three of its personnel in Jordan.

Russian Ambassador to the United Nations, Vasily Nebenzya, stated, "We strongly condemn this new brazen aggressive act by the US against a sovereign state, which creates more risks and increases the level of instability in an already volatile region."

Nebenzya considered the US actions in the region as "the latest in a series of illegal and irresponsible attacks" amid an unprecedented escalation of violence.

He added, "The massive airstrikes carried out by the US once again demonstrate to the world the aggressive nature of American policy in the Middle East and Washington's complete disregard for international law."

He emphasized that the United States is deliberately trying to "drag the largest countries in the Middle East, including Iran, into a regional conflict," calling on the international community to unconditionally condemn Washington's reckless actions and those of its allies, which violated the sovereignty of both Syria and Iraq.

On the other hand, Chinese Ambassador Zhang Jun said that the US action created "new disturbances" in the Middle East.

Jun continued, "History has shown that the use of military means will not provide any solutions to the problems that plague the Middle East," adding that the action taken by the US will only exacerbate "a vicious circle of mutual hostility."

The Chinese ambassador called on all concerned countries to refrain from acting out of self-interest, stating, "We are at a critical crossroads."