Iran Threatens Withdrawal from Nuclear Non-Proliferation Treaty Unless West Reduces Pressure
Military Watch Magazine Editorial Staff
Iranian Ambassador Kazem Jalali and Shahab-3 Nuclear Capable Ballistic Missile
Iranian ambassador to Russia Kazem Jalali warned in a press conference on February 10th that the country would seriously consider a withdrawal from the Treaty on Non-Proliferation of Nuclear Weapons (NPT) unless Western powers relaxed pressure against the state. This followed a similar threat issued by Iranian Foreign Minister Javad Zarif less than a month prior, while similar threats were made be officials in April 2019. Also in January, a motion was introduced in the Iranian parliament to leave the NPT. Threats to withdraw from the treaty come amid extremely harsh and growing American economic sanctions on the country, an American withdrawal from the Joint Comprehensive Plan of Action nuclear deal in 2018 despite no Iranian violations, and a fast expanding Western military presence in the Persian Gulf region. It follows the assassination of Iranian General Qasem Soleimani by U.S. forces on January 3rd. Iran has in response relaxed restrictions in place on uranium enrichment at its nuclear facilities - which has led Israeli intelligence to conclude that the country could possess its first nuclear warhead by the end of the year.
Iranian President Hassan Rouhani contradicted lawmakers as well as the foreign ministry in January - stressing that the country would never seek the development of nuclear weapons. Withdrawal from the NPT would remove the only legal obstacle to Iran’s development of a nuclear weapon, and such a withdrawal could be legal under the treaty’s tenth article which allows states to withdraw if faced with a serious threat to their supreme interests. This was cited by North Korea as the pretext for its withdrawal in 2002 - following American threats against the country under the George W. Bush administration. Both U.S. President Donald Trump and the NATO alliance have stated that Iran’s development of nuclear arms would be unacceptable - although it remains uncertain what response would be expected from the Western Bloc.
