I thank you Secretary General, Antonio Guterres, for your presence here today and for your remarks. I also express our appreciation to Assistant Secretary-General, Miroslav Jenča, and IAEA Director-General Grossi for responding swiftly to our urgent request to brief the Security Council.

Colleagues,
Just two days ago, we met in these chambers and made urgent calls for diplomacy and de-escalation in relation to the ongoing conflict between Israel and Iran. The Secretary General appealed to give peace a chance, and many of us echoed that call.

Guyana, like so many other countries, including on this Council, has consistently called for Israel and Iran to exercise maximum restraint and to avoid any miscalculations that would further plunge the region into deeper crisis.

Colleagues,
For months, we have listened to the increasingly dangerous rhetoric and threats. However, what we need at this time is leadership and diplomacy.

In this context, Guyana offers the following considerations.

First, what is unfolding in the Middle East concerns us all. We must renew our calls for de-escalation and urge the concerned parties to step back and return to diplomacy and dialogue. We call on influential states to encourage the parties in this direction. Resist the temptation to fan the flames of conflict, given the potentially grave humanitarian and security impacts as well as the attendant effects on global trade, including oil prices and food security.

Second, we urge the members of this Council to urgently address the grave threat posed by this conflict to international peace and security; to uphold their obligations under the UN Charter and take decisive action to end the hostilities. We must ensure that the parties avoid being trapped in a retaliatory tit for tat loop of violence that undermines regional and global peace and security.

Finally, the headwinds we face are indeed testing our collective resolve. Guyana reiterates its call for all parties to abide by the principles of the United Nations Charter and to respect and uphold international humanitarian law, particularly the principles of distinction, proportionality, and precaution, and ensure the protection of civilians and civilian objects. We also reiterate that the right to self-defence absolves neither party of their responsibilities and obligations under international law.

I thank you.