TEHRAN – Iran has called on nuclear-armed states to provide unconditional, legally binding guarantees against the use or threat of use of nuclear weapons and urged renewed international efforts to establish a West Asia free of nuclear weapons and other weapons of mass destruction.

Addressing the Conference on Disarmament in Geneva on Monday, Iran’s representative, Mohammad Hossein Sayyadnejad, said the complete elimination of nuclear weapons remains the only effective safeguard against nuclear threats and stressed that nuclear disarmament should remain the international community’s highest priority.

He criticized nuclear-weapon states for failing to fulfill their disarmament commitments while continuing to modernize and expand their arsenals. Sayyadnejad also called for negotiations on a legally binding mechanism to protect non-nuclear states from nuclear threats.

The Iranian diplomat further condemned 'double standards' regarding Israel’s undeclared nuclear arsenal, arguing that the Israeli regime remains the main obstacle to establishing a nuclear weapons-free zone in West Asia.

Reaffirming the peaceful nature of Iran’s nuclear program, Sayyadnejad said Tehran’s nuclear activities remain under International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) safeguards and warned that selective approaches undermine the credibility of the global non-proliferation regime.