Iranian Foreign Ministry spokesman Ismail Baghaei, responding to remarks by UN Secretary-General António Guterres, wrote on X that defining the United Nations’ mission solely as preventing wars between superpowers is a “misleading and dangerous” interpretation.
Baghaei said the United Nations should not only work to prevent conflicts between major powers but also play an active role in protecting the security of smaller countries. He stressed that a narrow interpretation of Article 2, Paragraph 4 of the UN Charter overlooks the concerns of many member states and creates grounds for justifying various wars.
Referring to the wars in Korea, Vietnam, the Congo, Iraq, Afghanistan, Yemen, Sudan and Gaza, Baghaei said that if the sole criterion is preventing wars between superpowers, then all of these conflicts would have to be considered “victories.”