Riyadh
15 February 2023

The U.S. and Gulf Cooperation Council (GCC) states issued a joint statement on Iran denouncing its “continued destabilising policies, including its support for terrorism and the use of advanced missiles, cyber weapons and Unmanned Aircraft Systems (UAS) and their proliferation in the region and around the world”. The participants also insisted that “Iran’s nuclear advances… have no credible civilian purpose and are gravely exacerbating regional and global tensions”, while the U.S. reiterated “President Biden’s commitment not to allow Iran to acquire a nuclear weapon”. The statement went on to voice a “commitment to expanding defence cooperation and interoperability to enhance their capabilities to constrain Iran’s ability to conduct destabilising activities and deter it from conducting future acts of aggression”, while highlighting diplomacy as “the preferred way to address Iran’s destabilising policies and nuclear escalation in a sustained manner”. They concluded by calling on “the international community to enforce all relevant United Nations Security Council Resolutions prohibiting transfers of arms and related materiel and ensuring accountability in this regard”.

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