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Iran appeals to UN chief to help ease tensions

Iran’s U.N. envoy accused “certain circles from outside of this region” of provocative policies and of escalating tensions in the Middle East.

By Associated Press

Iran is urging U.N. Secretary-General Antonio Guterres to help launch a diplomatic dialogue to ease the current “alarming security situation” in the broader Persian Gulf region.

Iran’s U.N. Ambassador Majid Takht Ravanchi said in a letter to the U.N. chief and the Security Council obtained Monday by The Associated Press that the United Nations must not remain indifferent “to addressing the root causes of the current state of affairs.”

He accused “certain circles from outside of this region” of provocative policies and of escalating tensions in the Middle East.

Ravanchi warned that “the eruption of any possible conflict will soon cross over from the regional level and will definitely have serious and extensive implications on international peace and security.”

The ambassador added that Iran “will never choose war,” but that “if war is imposed on us, Iran will vigorously exercise its inherent right to self-defense.”