IUNW Calls on Security Council to Mediate US-Iran Standoff

The killing of an American contractor in Iraq by militias affiliated with Iran and the subsequent assassination by the United States of Qasim Solaimani, Iran’s top commander and leader of the Iranian Revolutionary Guards’ Quds Force, has led to an unprecedented escalation of tensions that could threaten  yet another destructive war in the region. The US retaliatory killing of Solaimani was in clear violation of  Iraq’s sovereignty.

 Any escalation in so volatile a  region comes with a  huge potential cost.  The Iraq war has taught the region that conflicts and disputes cannot and should not be resolved by  military means —  that dialogue is the only means to assure world security. For this to happen, the United Nations must  play an active role by pressuring the governments of Iran and the United States to refrain from taking measures that result in further  escalation.

Threats  by Iranian and American officials to target more sites in the region would only bring about more violence  with   civilians bearing the brunt and paying the price.  UN-brokered negotiations are the way to resolve conflicts of this nature.     Military interventions cannot  resolve issues   related to influence, power and the region’s resources. The UN should urge  all  Member  States, especially  Security Council members, to avoid violence and ensure  that conflicts are resolved peaceably.

UN Secretary-General António Guterres should call  on the Security Council to convene and   make sure that any conflict threatening regional stablility  be resolved through the UN’s good offices. . Previous wars in the region  came at a very high cost. This  should serve as a lesson for all that violence is not the answer  and that dialogue through the UN is only way to bring this destructive escalation to an end.