Pakistan abstains as UN Security Council considers Iran nuclear monitoring resolution
By The South Asia Times
NEW YORK - Pakistan abstained on a UN Security Council draft resolution concerning the Panel of Experts supporting the council’s 1737 Committee on Iran, saying renewed diplomacy and dialogue are needed to address outstanding issues over Tehran’s nuclear program.
Speaking on Thursday, Pakistan’s Permanent Representative to the UN, Ambassador Asim Iftikhar Ahmad, said Islamabad was concerned that the Iran nuclear issue had become increasingly complicated amid regional tensions, hostilities and strikes on nuclear facilities.
Ahmad said Pakistan believed the issue should be resolved through peaceful means and in accordance with the rights and obligations of all parties.
He criticized what he described as a shift away from the cooperative approach that accompanied the adoption of UN Security Council Resolution 2231, which endorsed the 2015 Iran nuclear agreement, or JCPOA.
Pakistan calls for diplomacy
“Diplomacy and dialogue remain the guiding principle” for resolving outstanding issues concerning Iran’s nuclear program, Ahmad said, stressing that confrontation should be avoided.
He also backed the International Atomic Energy Agency’s role as the technical body responsible for nuclear safeguards, saying the IAEA should carry out its mandate independently and without political interference.
The UN says the Panel of Experts assists the 1737 Committee by examining information on implementation of Iran-related measures and investigating possible cases of non-compliance. Its current mandate was due to expire on Sept. 26, 2026.
- Call for return to negotiations
Ahmad urged all parties to renew diplomatic engagement, return to negotiations and implement commitments agreed under the Islamabad Memorandum of Understanding.
Pakistan, he said, would continue efforts to promote peace and stability in the region and called for a negotiated settlement “for the sake of regional and international peace and security.”
The Security Council’s Sept. 17 session came amid continuing divisions among major powers over how to address Iran’s nuclear file and sanctions-related mechanisms. Russia and China vetoed a US-backed resolution seeking to extend the mandate of the Iran sanctions monitoring panel
