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Reza Najafi, Iran’s deputy foreign minister for legal and international affairs, made the remarks in the fifth session of the Review Conference of the States Parties to the Chemical Weapons Convention in The Hague, the Netherlands, on Monday.

Najafi pointed to the importance of the Organization for the Prohibition of Chemical Weapons (OPCW) and a universal treaty on prohibition of chemical weapons, saying, “The Islamic Republic of Iran, as the biggest victim of chemical weapons in contemporary history, regards any sanctions against independent members of this organization by some member states to be against international law and the Chemical Weapons Convention.”

The Iranian diplomat also underlined the illegality and inhumane nature of the sanctions imposed by the West on the country and called for their immediate removal.

The sanctions have deprived Iranian veterans who have fallen victim to chemical weapons of access to “needed drugs and medical items,” Najafi said.

“It is unfortunate that these loved ones … have fallen victim to the actions of some Western governments twice,” he noted.

“Once because these governments sent materials to and [shared] the technology to produce chemical weapons with the [former Iraqi dictator] Saddam [Hussein]’s regime during the imposed war [against Iran], and once again due to the sanctions [imposed] by these governments,” he added.

Referring to the Israeli regime’s weapons of mass destruction, Najafi described the illegal entity as the main threat to the peace and security in the West Asia region and called for pressure from the international community to force the regime to join the Chemical Weapons Convention “without any preconditions or delays.”

The Iranian deputy foreign minister also demanded the destruction of chemical weapons in the US as the only State party to the Chemical Weapons Convention to still maintain its arsenal “within a set deadline,” and rejected any excuse for further delay in the matter.

During the imposed war on Iran in the 1980s, the Iraqi army continuously employed chemical weapons against Iranian combatants and civilians, leaving tens of thousands dead on the spot and many more suffering for years to come.

The June 1987 chemical attack on the western Iranian city of Sardasht killed over a hundred civilians and injured another 8,000 people. The chemical bombardment of Halabja town in Iraq’s Kurdistan region also left some 5,000 civilians dead and around 10,000 others injured.

After three decades, many of the survivors of the chemical attack still have to live with the long-term respiratory and even psychological effects of inhaling mu

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Second Brigadier General Hamzeh Qalandari said the world was surprised by Iranian weapons after the lifting of a 13-year UN arms embargo in October 2020.

“A country that had problems in all areas and was prohibited from any technology, has today reached a place on the edge of technology, with its weapons described in international media as a ‘game changer,’” he told IRNA.

“This fact led many countries to buy Iranian weapons or renovate and rebuild their own defense equipment using Iranian technology and equipment following the removal of the embargo.”

Iranian military experts and engineers have in recent years made remarkable breakthroughs in manufacturing a broad range of indigenous equipment, making the armed forces self-sufficient.

Iranian officials have made clear that the country will never bow to pressure to scale down its military programs, including its missile power, which are entirely meant for defense.

The defense official also noted that the international community today acknowledges that Iran engaged in a true battle against terrorism and that US-assassinated General Qassem Soleimnai was the greatest commander in the fight against the ominous scourge.

“Regarding the issues raised as the SCO’s main goals, i.e. the fight against terrorism, extremism and separatism, perhaps no one has had the experience of a true struggle as much as the Islamic Republic of Iran does,” he said.

“It is worth mentioning that today the international community acknowledges that Martyr Soleimani was the greatest commander in the fight against terrorism.”

Elsewhere in his interview, Qalandari referred to the talks between Iran’s Defense Minister Brigadier General Mohammad Reza Ashtiani and his counterparts on the sidelines of a meeting of the Shanghai Cooperation Organization (SCO)’s defense ministers in the Indian capital of New Delhi late last month.

“Most of the meetings featured a serious willingness to form an alliance and improve the level of defense and security cooperation with the Islamic Republic,” he said.

“All SCO countries also asked for using Iran’s experience in the fight against terrorism and its spread to the region and the world. Another request, which was made in almost all meetings, was to have a close look at Iran’s defense achievements.”

Also in his remarks, Qalandari drew a parallel between the North Atlantic Treaty Organization (NATO), a US-led military alliance, and the SCO, a Eurasian political, economic, international security and defense organization.

Unlike NATO, the SCO has focused on expanding its influence based on cooperation rather than power and force, he said, adding that the Eurasian organization has tried to distance itself away from military issues and seek stability in conflict zones as well as joint economic cooperation.

“Perhaps the Ukraine crisis is a practical example showing that NATO’s capability is declining like the power of the United States. It is contrary to the advancing path pursued by the Shanghai Cooperation Organization,” he said.

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SANA war correspondent reported on Friday evening that an agreement reached between Syrian Government and terrorist groups in Bosra al-Cham city.

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