VIENNA — Russia's envoy to international organizations, Mikhail Ulyanov, rejected a U.S. call for Iran to abandon its nuclear program, saying threats and sanctions will not change Tehran's course.
Ulyanov criticized the U.S. approach toward Iran, stating that threats of military force and tighter sanctions constitute "blackmailing, ultimatums and deadlines." He said Washington is accustomed to negotiating "from the position of strength," but that "this scheme doesn't work with Iran."
He advised the United States to drop what he termed "coercive elements" from its current position. Ulyanov also questioned the rationale behind President Donald Trump's remarks on Iran's nuclear program, asking why the U.S. specified 20 years rather than 15 or 25. He said the U.S. position was "not substantiated at all" and "guided exclusively by ideological considerations."
U.S. Ambassador to the United Nations Mike Waltz had previously stated that China "backed away" from Iran following President Trump's meetings with Chinese President Xi Jinping in Beijing this week. Waltz also said the U.S. offered to sell Iran uranium for a civilian program.
On Sept. 10, the International Atomic Energy Agency expressed concern over Iran's "continued noncompliance" with the Nuclear Non-Proliferation Treaty. Iran is a signatory to the NPT, which requires it not to produce nuclear weapons and to meet IAEA safeguards for uranium used in civilian programs.
Ulyanov criticized a draft resolution on Iran as "completely ill-conceived" and "useless." He warned that U.S. policies make it risky to send IAEA inspectors to Iran, citing a lack of necessary assurances from Washington.
