No Case for Any UN Action against Iran: Russia

Moscow said evidence presented by the United States alleging that Iran had supplied missiles to Yemen’s Houthi Ansarullah fighters is not conclusive, stressing there is no case for any UN action against Tehran.

After traveling to Washington to view pieces of weapons that Washington claims Tehran gave to Houthi fighters, Russia’s UN Ambassador Vassily Nebenzia told reporters on Wednesday that “Iran is vehemently denying it is supplying anything to Yemen.”

“We only heard some vague talk about some action,” Nebenzia said. “If there is something (proposed), we will see. How can we pass judgment prematurely before we know what it is about?”

The Russian envoy said Yemen hosted a pile of weapons from the old days, “so I cannot give you anything conclusive.”

Asked whether there was a case against Iran at the UN, Nebenzia answered: “No.”

Nebenzia along with other UN Security Council ambassadors paid a visit to Washington this week to inspect debris purportedly from a Yemeni missile that reached deep inside Saudi territory last year, with the US claiming that it was supplied by Iran.

US Ambassador to the UN Nikki Haley last month presented the remnants of an alleged Iranian-made ballistic missile fired from Yemen in November at King Khalid International Airport near the Saudi capital Riyadh.

Haley claimed remnants of the missile proved that Iran was violating international law by giving missiles to the Houthi Ansarullah movement.

The Houthis have been fighting back a Saudi-led aggression with allied Yemeni army troops and tribal fighters.

Iran’s UN mission has rejected the US claim as “unfounded,” saying the accusation seeks to “cover up for the Saudi war crimes in Yemen, with the US complicity, and divert international and regional attention from the stalemate war of aggression against the Yemenis.”

Iran’s Defense Minister Brigadier General Amir Hatami has also dismissed the US claim as a “ridiculous charade,” while Iranian Foreign Minister Mohammad Javad Zarif has said the allegation is aimed at covering up Washington’s “highly dangerous moves” in the region.

The administration of US President Donald Trump has for months been lobbying for Iran to be held accountable at the UN, saying Washington will seek action at the Security Council against Iran.

The US has been one of the main suppliers of arms to the Saudi-led coalition pounding Yemen for nearly three years.

Since March 2015, Saudi Arabia and some of its Arab allies have been carrying out airstrikes against the Houthi Ansarullah movement in an attempt to restore power to fugitive former president Abd Rabbuh Mansour Hadi, a close ally of Riyadh.

Over 14,000 Yemenis, including thousands of women and children, have lost their lives in the deadly military campaign.