The UN has called for “maximum restraint” from allparties amid heightened tensions between Iran and the US and in the Gulfregion.
“We are very concerned about the volatility of thesituation. We call on everyone to exercise maximum restraint, prevent anyescalation of and heightening of tensions,” Stephane Dujarric, spokesmanfor UN Secretary-General Antonio Guterres, told reporters on Thursday, Xinhuareported.
“The situation… is already fairly volatile and we areconcerned by the rhetoric that we have been hearing,” he told a regularpress briefing.
Guterres is following the situation very closely andcontacts have been made, said Dujarric.
“We are following the situation. Our message, and theSecretary-General’s message, is one of restraint, both in terms of actions andin terms of rhetoric. These are situations where actions and rhetoric can bemisinterpreted and can lead to catastrophic actions. It’s very, very importantthat we see restraint both in terms of the rhetoric and in terms of theaction.”
He said the Secretary-General’s good offices remainavailable at request. “But through the contacts that we have, we remainvery much involved and are following the situation very closely.”
The US has ramped up pressure on Iran, by designating Iran’sIslamic Revolution Guards Corps as a terror group, imposing a total ban onIranian oil exports, and building up its military presence in the Gulf.