Iran affirms its human rights support

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The Islamic Republic of Iran is steadfast in its support and promotion of human rights despite the cliches that have been generated through smear campaigns carried out by some governments in a bid to discredit Iran, the Iranian Foreign Ministry said on Thursday, commenting on the hostile positions taken by several European governments toward the government.

Tehran underlined that the rights of women, as well as those of all members of Iranian society, have always been safeguarded and respected in many aspects, such as women's access to education, equal rights, and respect for human rights.

The Islamic Republic of Iran is a pioneer of women's rights, the statement stressed.

Iran was ousted from a United Nations women's body on Wednesday for what is claimed to be policies contrary to the rights of women and girls.

The proposal was made by none other than the United States, which suggested that Iran be expelled from a United Nations women's body for what it claimed are practices against the rights of women and girls, following the Western-fueled riots spurred by the death of Mahsa Amini.

The 54-member UN Economic and Social Council (ECOSOC) adopted a US-drafted resolution to "remove with immediate effect the Islamic Republic of Iran from the Commission on the Status of Women for the remainder of its 2022-2026 term."

Read next: Iran denounces West's meddling in internal affairs, Mahsa Amini’s case

29 members voted in favor, eight against, and 16 abstained.

In a related context, a day prior, the Netherlands, a US NATO ally, censured the United States-led political attempt to remove Iran from the UN Commission on the Status of Women (CSW), emphasizing that the world body should be a venue for all members of the international community to arrive at a consensus.

Dutch Minister of Foreign Affairs Wopke Hoekstra argued that the CSW, dedicated to the promotion of gender equality and the empowerment of women, is a place for all UN member states to work together and build a consensus.

Australia, Canada, England, Guatemala, and New Zealand have already announced their support for Washington’s push to oust the Islamic Republic of Iran from the 45-member commission. 

Iran does not accept fake agendas organized as part of a political campaign to maximize the pressure exerted on Iran as a growing nation and government, the statement further read. 

It also went on to condemn the abuse of international processes in the UN Human Rights Council and the EU foreign ministers council.

After the 54-member UN Economic and Social Council (ECOSOC) approved the US-drafted resolution to exclude the Islamic Republic from the UN commission for the remaining two years of its 2022–2026 term, Tehran's Foreign Ministry spokesperson Nasser Kanaani remarked on Wednesday, that the "US-led non-consensus resolution," violated the UN charter and set a dangerous precedent. However, it was approved with 29 votes in favor, eight votes against, and 16 abstentions.

Kanaani reiterated that Washington's "malicious" campaign against the Islamic Republic was an effort to "impose its unilateral political demands" on the international community, adding that this is a blatant disregard for the official electoral procedures at international organizations. 

The Islamic Republic explained that its police tried to control the rampant violence that took place during the recent riots, noting that it tried to confront terrorist acts in accordance with the rules and based on respect for human rights.

Moreover, Kanaani noted that "it is ridiculous that the fake Israeli regime is counted as a member of the Commission on the Status of Women despite its dark record of organized crimes committed against the oppressed Palestinian people with the support of the US and its lackeys."

Kanaani asked, “How has a country which is itself a big violator of the rights of the Iranian nation and community of women and has spared no hostile action against the Iranian nation’s rights and interests since the Islamic Revolution now becomes a flag-bearer in supporting the rights of Iranian women?” 

Iran rejected any selective use of human rights, noting that it has become a tool to advance the political interests of the US and EU governments, rejecting the double standards of those governments toward their allies.

Additionally, Tehran underlined that it saw the silence of the claimants of human rights against the crimes as a clear example of human rights being sacrificed for political interest, noting that it would not tolerate individuals and institutions systemically involved in the promotion of violence and terrorism.

Iran will use all national and international legal and judicial capabilities to fulfill the rights of the Iranian nation, Tehran added.

Iran strives for stable nuclear deal

The Iranian foreign ministry continued by touching on the talks aimed at reviving the Joint Comprehensive Plan of Action (JCPOA) and the lifting of sanctions on the republic, stressing that Iran's demands in the talks were within the JCPOA's framework, though the long list of violations committed by the Europeans and the United States have forced Tehran to be more realistic.

Accordingly, it added that Tehran's current goal was to strike a stable agreement that would see it benefiting from the guarantees of the sanctions being lifted and would not be easily violated by the other signatories.

Over the past year and a half, efforts have been mobilized to revive the JCPOA deal after then-President Donald Trump, with encouragement from then-Israeli occupation Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, had America withdraw from it in 2018 - stating that the agreement was "a horrible one-sided deal that should have never, ever been made," claiming that "it didn't bring calm, it didn't bring peace, and it never will."

The original JCPOA was signed in 2015 by China, France, Germany, Iran, Russia, the United Kingdom, and the United States, as well as the European Union.

The latest round of talks on reviving the Iran nuclear deal took place in Doha on June 29-30, with the talks being suspended after the US and Iranian representatives went back home.

However, just weeks after the deal seemed to have died, the EU put forward on August 8 what it called a final text to restore the agreement, in which Iran would see sanctions relief and be able to sell its oil again in return for severe limits on its nuclear program.

Iran's statements come after International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) Director General Rafael Grossi said Saturday that there was still hope for the resurrection of talks on the revival of the Iran nuclear deal.

"What one can say is that the JCPOA, or what remains of it, has become, in practical terms, irrelevant. It will have to be revived, and I think there is still maybe a glimmer of hope that this could be done, although that is in the hands of those negotiating," Grossi told Al Jazeera during an interview.

Iran also commented on its ties with the IAEA, saying that it was a responsible member of the NPT, and on that basis, it has always cooperated with the IAEA in compliance with international obligations. Iran stressed that it advised Western countries not to destroy the existing ties of technical cooperation it has with the IAEA.

Drones to Russia

Meanwhile, the statement concluded by touching on Iran's stance on the Ukraine war, citing its fundamental position regarding the ongoing war as well as the necessity of ending the conflict via political and diplomatic channels.

The Foreign Ministry stressed that Iran never provided any drones to be used in the war and that all of the republic's defense and weapons cooperation with other countries have been in line with Iran's international rights and obligations.

Iran has been facing accusations of having supplied weapons to Russia without any sustainable evidence.

Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky went as far as claiming that Russia was deploying almost 2,500 attack drones purchased from Iran, namely the Iranian Shahed-136 UAVs.

Ukraine's accusations spiraled into the West adopting these claims, and now the United States is using the allegations as a card against Iran.

However, Iranian Foreign Minister Hossein Amir-Abdollahian said admitted that Tehran gave a small batch of drones to Russia, but it was before the Ukraine war broke out.

Ukrainian Presidential Adviser Mykhailo Podolyak said earlier in November that it was necessary to conduct strikes on Iran due to Tehran allegedly supplying drones to Russia.

The usage of drones has prompted Ukraine's allies to come together in various ways to try and help Kiev, with Turkey and the United States sending in drones and the Israeli occupation providing Kiev with intelligence on the Iranian drones being used in Ukraine.

Iran and Ukraine were supposed to sit down and discuss the issue, but Kiev bailed out on the talks at the last second.