Iran Now Demands Weapons Embargo Be Lifted in Any Deal
Tue, July 7, 2015
Iranian Revolutionary Guards Corps soldiers
salute from a tank in from of the Ayatollah Ruhollah Khomeini leader of
the Islamic revolution in Iran. (Photo: © Reuters)
On the eve of the self-imposed July 7 deadline by the world powers to
obtain an agreement with on on their nuclear program, new demands by
the Iranian regime have shocked Western diplomats. The demands include
lifting sanctions on Iran’s ballistic missile program as well as the
termination of a UN general arms embargo to the Islamic Republic.
In response, one Western official was quoted as saying, "There's no appetite for that on our part." Another said flatly that such an agreement was “out of the question.”
The demands address conventional weapons, which have not, until now, been a part of the negotiations. In the context of the framework agreement, the U.S. government assured Congress in April that "important restrictions on conventional arms and ballistic missiles" would be incorporated into any new UN regulations for Iran.
Restriction on convention weapons are perceived as a key factor in garnering support in Congress for any nuclear agreement with Iran.
The arm’s embargo was imposed on Iran by the UN in 2007 as part of the sanctions over Iran’s nuclear program. Russian and China support lifting the embargo.
Meanwhile, a senior Iranian general stated that even if an agreement is reached between Iran and the world powers, Iran will still view America as an enemy.
"The
US might arrive at some agreements with us within the framework of the
group 5+1 (the US, Russia, China, Britain and France plus Germany), but
we should never hold a positive view over the enemy," said Brigadier General Ahmad Reza Pourdastan, commander of the Iranian ground forces.
"Our enmity with them is over the principles and is rooted because we are after the truth and nations' freedom, but they seek exploiting nations and putting them in chains," Pourdastan explained.
In response, one Western official was quoted as saying, "There's no appetite for that on our part." Another said flatly that such an agreement was “out of the question.”
The demands address conventional weapons, which have not, until now, been a part of the negotiations. In the context of the framework agreement, the U.S. government assured Congress in April that "important restrictions on conventional arms and ballistic missiles" would be incorporated into any new UN regulations for Iran.
Restriction on convention weapons are perceived as a key factor in garnering support in Congress for any nuclear agreement with Iran.
The arm’s embargo was imposed on Iran by the UN in 2007 as part of the sanctions over Iran’s nuclear program. Russian and China support lifting the embargo.
Meanwhile, a senior Iranian general stated that even if an agreement is reached between Iran and the world powers, Iran will still view America as an enemy.
"Our enmity with them is over the principles and is rooted because we are after the truth and nations' freedom, but they seek exploiting nations and putting them in chains," Pourdastan explained.
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