ISLAMABAD: Pakistan opposes any external interference in Iran’s internal affairs and urges all sides to exercise restraint, its permanent representative to the United Nations (UN) said on Thursday, calling for a peaceful de-escalation of United States-Tehran tensions to ensure regional stability.
The development comes as Iran’s leadership seeks to quell the worst domestic unrest since its 1979 revolution, with a rights group putting the death toll over 2,600. As the protests over high costs of living swell, US President Donald Trump has threated to intervene on behalf of anti-government protesters.
Top officials from Egypt, Oman, Saudi Arabia and Qatar have raised concerns in the last 48 hours that a US military intervention would shake the global economy and destabilize an already volatile region, AP reported, citing an Arab diplomat who spoke on condition of anonymity to describe the sensitive conversations.
Speaking at a UN Security Council briefing, Pakistan’s permanent representative Asim Iftikhar Ahmad said Islamabad has been carefully observing developments in Iran and the region in recent days, voicing concern over “new threats to regional peace and stability.”
“The UN Charter prohibits threat or use of force against other States’ territorial integrity or independence, or to interfere in matters essentially within the domestic jurisdiction of states. Any external interference in the domestic affairs of states is inconsistent with international law and principles of the UN Charter,” he said.
