2024-02-06T05:00:47+00:00
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/ The UN Security Council held an emergency meeting on Monday night to discuss the repercussions of the strikes launched by the United States of America on Iraq and Syria, at the request of Russia.
In this regard, the opinions of the three major countries differed regarding these strikes. While Russia and China condemned them, the United States of America defended them.
Russia
Russia’s UN Ambassador Vasily Nebenzia said in a speech during the meeting that there was no justification for the US attacks.
“We see in these attempts to ‘flex muscles’ a desire to influence the domestic political scene in America in the first place, and a desire to correct the disastrous image of the current US administration on the international scene as the presidential election campaign heats up,” Nebenzia added.
Russia’s Permanent Representative to the Security Council, Vasily Nebenzia, stressed in a meeting of the UN Security Council that the recent actions of the Anglo-Saxons in the Middle East constitute a direct threat to international peace and security.
China
For his part, China’s Permanent Representative to the United Nations, Zhang Jiong, said that the US strikes on Iraq and Syria blatantly violate the sovereignty of these two countries.
The Chinese delegate added during the UN Security Council session, which was held at Russia’s request, that “history has proven time and again that military means are not the solution, and that the excessive use of force will only lead to a greater crisis.”
He said, “The recent US strikes on several targets in Syria and Iraq resulted in a large number of casualties, and such actions constitute a flagrant violation of the sovereignty, independence and territorial integrity of Syria and Iraq.”
America
In turn, US Deputy Ambassador Robert Wood told the Security Council that US airstrikes on the Houthis and other militias “are consistent with international law.”
He added that the air strikes “do not constitute a violation of the UN Charter,” adding, “We will continue to defend our forces.”
Wood pointed to 165 attacks by Iranian-backed militias so far against American soldiers.
“We will continue to hold Iran and its proxy militias accountable for their destabilizing actions,” he added.
The US Central Command reported early Saturday morning, February 3, that its forces had launched airstrikes in Iraq and Syria targeting sites of the Quds Force of the Iranian Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps and its affiliated militia groups.
The command said in a statement today that US military forces struck more than 85 targets with several aircraft including long-range bombers launched from the United States.
According to the statement, the airstrikes used more than 125 precision-guided munitions, noting that the targets included command and control headquarters, intelligence centers, and warehouses for missiles, drones, ammunition, and logistical supplies belonging to the militias and the Revolutionary Guards.
US President Joe Biden has directed military forces to strike targets in Iraq and Syria used by the Iranian Revolutionary Guard and its affiliated militias to attack US forces, he said, stressing that although the United States does not seek escalation in the Middle East, it will inevitably respond to those who harm Americans.
White House National Security Council spokesman John Kirby confirmed on Saturday that the Iraqi government had already been informed before the airstrikes were launched.
In turn, the Iraqi government spokesman, Bassem Al-Awadi, denied the existence of prior coordination between Baghdad and Washington regarding the strikes launched by American forces targeting security forces’ positions in Anbar Governorate in the west of the country, confirming that 16 victims and 25 wounded had fallen as a result of that “aggression.”