Counterpoint: Two Centuries of German-Azerbaijani Shared History
German settlers arrived in Azerbaijani lands around two centuries ago, establishing communities that became kno...
Iran has dismissed a joint U.S.-E3 draft resolution on its nuclear programme as “meaningless, illogical, and illegal”, saying Tehran is ready to respond if the measure is pursued at the ongoing IAEA board meeting in Vienna.
“The draft is based on a report of Director General of International Atomic Energy Agency. We have encountered this pattern before. Whenever they fall short in other areas, they turn to the agency and its chief, or conversely, the Director General himself effectively puts himself forward so that the European parties and the US can exploit him to exert political pressure against Iran,” Foreign Ministry spokesman Esmaeil Baghaei said.
Baghaei was responding to a question at the ministry’s weekly press briefing on Monday about efforts by the U.S. and the European troika - the UK, France and Germany - to seek a resolution at the IAEA Board of Governors meeting referring Iran’s nuclear file to the UN Security Council.
“This action is meaningless from several perspectives. From a legal standpoint, they claimed that snapback had revived the UN Security Council resolutions. The renewed action by the European troika and the US to raise the issue of Iran’s nuclear program at the UN Security Council contradicts the very claim they had made and proves the correctness of the position of Iran, China, and Russia, which was that snapback was fundamentally illegal and inapplicable.”
Baghaei was referring to the U.S.-E3 referral of Iran to the Security Council in 2025, which led to the reimposition of UN sanctions on Iran after a 10-year suspension following the 2015 nuclear deal.
Tehran said the move paved the way for the Israeli-U.S. war against Iran in February 2026. It also criticised IAEA Director General Rafael Grossi, barring him from visiting Iran and preventing the agency’s inspectors from monitoring Iranian nuclear sites bombed during the war.
“Second, the three European countries are discrediting themselves. They have already gone down this path and have seen what reward they received from the United States. They were humiliated, sidelined, and at the same time caused the issues related to Iran’s nuclear file to become more complicated.”
According to Baghaei, the U.S.-E3 demand, backed by Grossi, for inspections of Iranian nuclear facilities damaged during the war is “highly unreasonable”.
“The United States and the Zionist regime are the ones responsible for and the cause of this situation. The reason the Agency cannot gain access to Iran’s nuclear centers and facilities is the crime committed by the United States and the Zionist regime by attacking Iran’s nuclear facilities. They themselves are blocked this path, and now they are blaming Iran for the Agency’s inability to access Iran’s nuclear facilities. This defeats the purpose.”
He condemned the proposed draft resolution as “a sign of bad faith”, warning that its sponsors are “seeking to escalate the situation”.
“Iran will certainly take the necessary measures in response to any ill-considered action by the three European countries and the United States. We have repeatedly advised the European troika to truly learn from this Iranian wisdom: It is a mistake to test what has already been tested,” Baghaei said.
Asked about an agreement between Iran and Oman concerning the Strait of Hormuz, Baghaei said the two sides had held serious negotiations with a high degree of mutual understanding, but that certain countries, including the U.S., had sabotaged the process.
He said Tehran and Muscat are expected to register an agreement on a provisional navigation route with the London-based International Maritime Organization in the coming days.
Baghaei also announced that President Masoud Pezeshkian is due to attend the upcoming annual UN General Assembly in New York.
Confirming that visas for the Iranian delegation had not yet been issued, he called on the U.S. to fulfil its obligations as host country of the United Nations headquarters.
The U.S. has banned government employees working in Saudi Arabia from using airports in the country without special authorisation. It comes after a deadly Houthi strike on Riyadh's King Khalid International Airport killed at least 13 people last week.
The Saudi-led coalition said early Thursday that it intercepted and destroyed a drone over Saudi Arabia’s Eastern Province.
U.S. President Donald Trump has called it “a disgrace” that Ukraine has resumed attacks on Russian oil refineries. Attacks are continuing from Russia and Ukraine as media reports say Ukraine has almost run out of Patriot interceptor missiles.
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Armenia is looking to turn shared environmental challenges into opportunities for regional cooperation, with Prime Minister Nikol Pashinyan highlighting the potential for stronger ties with neighbouring countries through biodiversity protection.
Student organisations, opposition groups and youth-led activists took to the streets in Patna and Mumbai on Friday (16 October), demanding the resignation of India's Chief Election Commissioner, Gyanesh Kumar, amid a row over changes to voter lists.
The U.S. has banned government employees working in Saudi Arabia from using airports in the country without special authorisation. It comes after a deadly Houthi strike on Riyadh's King Khalid International Airport killed at least 13 people last week.
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