MOSCOW, March 4. /TASS/. Iran has the right to retaliate against the US and Israel under Article 51 of the UN Charter, the country's Ambassador to Russia Kazem Jalali said in an article for TASS.
"Iran's foreign policy doctrine is based on strategic restraint and maintaining regional stability, but the continued systematic attacks on the country's vital interests are a clear example of armed aggression and give Iran an inherent right to self-defense in accordance with Article 51 of the United Nations Charter," the diplomat noted.
According to the ambassador, Iran's actions are not acts of aggression but a systematic response aimed at restoring the "balance of deterrence" and preserving mandatory norms in the face of gross violations of international law.
The United States and Israel launched a large-scale military operation against Iran on February 28. Major Iranian cities, including Tehran, were struck. The White House justified the attack by citing alleged missile and nuclear threats from Iran. At the same time, US leadership openly called on the Iranian population to rise up against their government and seize power.
As a result of the strikes, Iran’s supreme leader, Ayatollah Ali Khamenei, and several other senior figures in the leadership of the Islamic Republic were killed.
The Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps announced a retaliatory operation, targeting sites in Israel. US military bases in Bahrain, Jordan, Qatar, Kuwait, the UAE, and Saudi Arabia were also hit.