By Pooya Stone
The US Department of State has published highlights of its Iran policy over the past week in a fact sheet summarizing 19-23 August.
US Secretary of State Mike Pompeo highlighted Iran’s threats to Middle East peace and security in an address to the United Nations Security Council on 20 August 2019.
Pompeo emphasized the importance for greater cooperation in the Middle East.
Pompeo said in a tweet on 21 August: “The Iranian regime is the greatest ongoing threat to peace and security in the region. At the #UNSC, I condemned its testing of advanced ballistic missile systems, support to proxies in the #MiddleEast, and inexcusable sabotage and seizure of commercial vessels in the Gulf.”
The Iranian regime is the greatest ongoing threat to peace and security in the region. At the #UNSC, I condemned its testing of advanced ballistic missile systems, support to proxies in the #MiddleEast, and inexcusable sabotage and seizure of commercial vessels in the Gulf. pic.twitter.com/Gtq5WVfpBX
— Secretary Pompeo (@SecPompeo) August 20, 2019
Pompeo also met with Polish Foreign Minister Jacek Czaputowicz to identify the key challenges in the region and propose solutions, naming the greatest ongoing threat to peace and security in the region as the Islamic Republic of Iran.
COUNTDOWN TO TERROR CLOCK
In a separate tweet on 21 August, Pompeo wrote: “The @UN arms embargo on #Iran and the travel ban on Qasem Soleimani expire in October 2020. Our #CountdownToTerror clock is tracking how long until Iran is unleashed to create new global turmoil. We must not let this happen”.
The @UN arms embargo on #Iran and the travel ban on Qasem Soleimani expire in October 2020. Our #CountdownToTerror clock is tracking how long until Iran is unleashed to create new global turmoil. We must not let his happen. https://t.co/4UtnMREgah
— Secretary Pompeo (@SecPompeo) August 20, 2019
At the UN, Pompeo reminded nations that the UN arms embargo on Iran and the UN travel ban on individuals – including General Soleimani – will expire next year in October. The Security Council has a role to play to ensure that the arms embargo on the world’s top sponsor of terrorism does not expire. On the State Department’s Iran online page, there is a countdown clock to the expiration date of the arms embargo and the travel ban.
