Iran rejects UK, Australia’s claims, highlights double standards

Baqaei called on the two countries to reconsider their policies that contradict international law and interfere in the internal affairs of other countries and the West Asian region.

The spokesperson pointed to the continuous support by the UK and Australia for the Zionist regime’s illegal actions, crimes, and aggressions in occupied Palestine and West Asia and censured their one-sided and biased stance regarding Iran’s defensive operations following the Israeli regime’s attack on the Iranian embassy in Damascus.

He emphasized that Iran’s defensive operations, dubbed True Promise 1 and 2, were fully in line with the principle of legitimate defense according to international law and the UN Charter.

The spokesperson also rejected the repeated claim that Iran is sending ballistic missiles to Russia, describing the accusation as part of the US and UK’s scheme to increasingly securitize international relations and globalize the Ukraine conflict. He noted that even the Ukrainian president has denied the claim of Iran sending ballistic missiles to Russia.

Baqaei pointed out that the root cause of instability in West Asia is the ongoing occupation and aggressive expansionism of the Zionist regime, which has always been fully supported by the US, UK, Australia, and some other Western countries.

He noted that over the past 14 months, the policy has continued in the form of genocide against the Palestinian people and aggressions against Lebanon, Syria, and Yemen, adding, “Undoubtedly, the UK, Australia, and other supporters of the regime must be held accountable as accomplices in Israel’s heinous crimes.”

The spokesperson also took a swipe at the UK and Australia’s blatant and widespread human rights violations, including systematic human rights abuses in prisons and detention centers for refugees in both countries, their complicity in the crimes committed by the Zionist regime against the Palestinian people, and the continuation of Australia’s colonial extermination plans against the aboriginal people.

Baqaei called for an end to the instrumental and hypocritical approach to human rights by these two countries.

Citing the recent remarks by the UK foreign secretary that proving genocide in occupied Palestine requires the killing of millions of people, he slammed the UK’s policy of ‘genocide denial’ in Gaza as shameful. He also stated that such a government lacks the moral authority to preach about human rights.

The spokesperson also dismissed the accusations regarding Iran’s peaceful nuclear program, noting that the Iranian nuclear activities and projects are based on the country’s technical and practical needs within the framework of its legal obligations and rights as a member of the Non-Proliferation Treaty (NPT) and under the Safeguards Agreement, supervised by the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA).

He emphasized that, according to the atomic agency’s reports, Iran’s nuclear activities have never deviated from the peaceful path.

Baqaei referred to the transfer of nuclear submarines by the US and UK, as two nuclear-armed states, to Australia under the AUKUS pact, which has raised widespread proliferation concerns and has been widely criticized by the IAEA.

He also highlighted their inaction regarding Israel’s arsenal of weapons of mass destruction, describing their policies as clear examples of double standards towards nuclear non-proliferation and their disregard for international peace and stability.

The spokesperson called for an end to the double standards by the UK and Australia regarding international norms and rules.