Mike Waltz, U.S. ambassador to the United Nations, criticized his Iranian counterpart on Thursday, telling the U.N. Security Council that U.S. President Donald Trump’s patience with the Islamic Republic was “not unlimited,” and that Tehran was carrying out a “cynical, sad, and sick attempt at global blackmail” in the Strait of Hormuz.
The council convened at Bahrain’s request following recent Iranian attacks. Bahraini Foreign Minister Abdullatif bin Rashid Al Zayani traveled to New York to participate in the emergency session.
Despite a U.S.-Iran Memorandum of Understanding signed on June 17 aimed at reducing regional tensions, Iran has targeted a commercial vessel that it said deviated from an approved transit route through the Strait of Hormuz, while seeking to impose new controls over the strategic waterway.
The latest escalation followed U.S. Central Command strikes on 10 Iranian military targets over the weekend. Tehran then launched attacks on U.S. military bases in Kuwait and Bahrain.
Waltz told the council that “Iran cannot, and we cannot allow it to, hold the world’s economy hostage.”
He said Tehran had obstructed commercial shipping regardless of a vessel’s origin, destination or cargo, including shipments of “fertilizers to farmers in Africa, aid to Sudan, fuel to Japan.”
Waltz added that a prolonged disruption of shipping through the strait would have severe consequences for 61 developing economies, citing the U.N. Trade and Development agency.
Amir Saeid Iravani, Iran’s U.N. ambassador, rejected accusations by the United States, Bahrain and other Security Council members, instead accusing Washington and Jerusalem of unlawful military action.
“Once again, the representative of the United States has resorted to lies and disinformation against Iran,” Iravani said. He argued that Bahrain and Western members of the council were attempting to shift blame for the conflict, described Iran’s recent strikes as defensive attacks on U.S. military facilities and said that during negotiations on implementing the U.S.-Iran agreement, “the council is expected to refrain from convening a meeting that risks undermining these ongoing efforts.”
Waltz responded sharply.
“Let me remind you where you are,” he said. “This is not Tehran. This is the United States of America. This is the United Nations Security Council. You will not silence this body.”
He also pointed to Iranian strikes on a residential neighborhood and a hotel in Bahrain and rejected Iran’s claim that attacks on commercial shipping were justified as self-defense.
“I ask, did the Singaporean air force or military attack Tehran or attack Iran?” Waltz said. “No, but yet Iran attacked a Singaporean-flagged commercial vessel. We have the ambassador here from Panama. Panamanian-flagged vessels were attacked just this last week. Did Panama attack Iran? Is that self-defense against Panama?”
Addressing the council, Waltz said that “if it has a backbone, it won’t stand for it,” adding that the international community “will hold this Iranian regime accountable for its attacks on our populations around the world through this sick attempt at global coercion.”
