Dr. Nayef F. M. Alhajraf, Secretary General of the Gulf Cooperation Council, sent a letter yesterday to the UN Security Council asking for the extension of restrictions set forth in UN Security Council Resolution 2231 (Annex B), on the movement of conventional weapons to and from Iran. Those restrictions are set to expire on 18 October 2020.

The GCC Secretary General pointed out that Iran has continued to proliferate conventional weapons and arm terrorist and sectarian organizations and movements throughout the region. In the years following the adoption of UNSCR 2231 in 2015, Iran has not ceased or desisted from armed interventions in neighboring countries, directly and through organizations and movements armed and trained by Iran. As such, it is inappropriate to lift the restrictions on conventional weapons’ movement to and from Iran until it abandons its destabilizing activities in the region and ceases to provide weapons to terrorist and sectarian organizations. It is imperative to extend those restrictions to ensure and preserve peace and stability in this region and the rest of the world.