GENEVA — Saudi Arabia has called on the international community to extend the UN arms embargo on Iran. In a speech delivered early Thursday at the United Nations Conference on Disarmament, Dr. Abdulaziz Al-Wasel, the Kingdom's ambassador to the United Nations, once again brought to the notice of the world that Iran smuggles weapons to militias to disturb the peace in the Middle East, calling for an extension of the arms embargo on Iran, which is due to expire on Oct. 18. He stressed Saudi Arabia's support for international measures to rein in Iran's destabilizing activities in the region and to force the Iranian regime to adopt a peaceful approach in terms of actions and not merely words. "Lifting the arms embargo on Iran will only lead to more destruction and devastation and fuel conflicts in the region," Al-Wasel said. "The international community will, in the coming hours, have a crucial and important date that will determine a new future for the people of the region," he said. "There are two paths: either to maintain or protect international peace and security or to give the Iranian regime an opportunity to commit more crimes and violations against the people of the region." Al-Wasel emphasized that the Middle East region is currently going through a delicate, critical and dangerous phase at all levels as it is still witnessing an unprecedented level of weapon smuggling for terrorist and fundamentalist groups with an aim to undermine the security of the region. The missiles and other weapons are falling in the hands of militant groups who are using them to target civilians and civilian infrastructure. These attacks also harm the global economy by threatening waterways and targeting oil installations in the region, which is the backbone of the global economy, Al-Wasel added.
