IRI FM leaves Tehran for Geneva

IRI’s Foreign Minister Ali Akbar Salehi departed Tehran for the Swiss capital of Geneva to attend a meeting of the UN Human Rights Council (UNHRC). Heading a high-ranking delegation, Salehi left the Iranian capital on Sunday to take part in the 19th UN Human Rights Council meeting. The UN Human Rights Council is an inter-governmental body with 47 member states, which was established by the UN General Assembly in 2006 with the main objective of addressing instances of human rights violations. During the meeting, Salehi will elaborate on Iran’s policies on human rights issues. The top Iranian diplomat is also scheduled to participate in the UN Disarmament Conference, also scheduled to be held in the Swiss capital.

"The UN Human Rights Council is an inter-governmental body with 47 member states, which was established by the UN General Assembly in 2006 with the main objective of addressing instances of human rights violations"Salehi plans to hold talks with other foreign ministers and officials attending the conference, too. The UN Disarmament Conference, the world's sole multinational negotiating forum for disarmament, has been convened in Geneva since 1979. It comprises of 65 member states including the major possessor and producer of atomic weapons, the United States, which is also the only country that has actually used the weapon of mass destruction, in raids against Japan in 1945, killing over 150,000 civilians. Nuclear disarmament and the cessation of nuclear arms race, the prevention of a nuclear war, a comprehensive program for disarmament and transparency in arms maintenance and production are parts of the conference’s agenda. The Islamic Republic of Iran has maintained its position on the global disarmament issue, frequently calling for a total elimination of all nuclear weapons.

In November 2011, the UN General Assembly endorsed an Iran-sponsored resolution on nuclear disarmament which reiterates the urgency for a nuclear-free Middle East and demands that the Zionist regime sign the nuclear Non-proliferation Treaty (NPT). Iran and many other nations in the Middle East have also raised major concerns about the reported possession of hundreds of nuclear warheads by the Israeli regime, which has never denied having such arms and has adamantly refused to agree to any inspection of its nuclear facilities by international inspectors. Nevertheless, the UN Disarmament Conference has never acted to seriously address the Israeli possession of atomic weapons