Secretary of State Mike Pompeo blamed Iran on Oct. 3 for threats to U.S. missions in Iraq and terminated the 1955 amity treaty between Washington and Tehran.
Pompeo’s announcement came hours after the International Court of Justice (ICJ) ruled that Washington’s sanctions are in violation of the 1955 treaty.
The court, which does not have jurisdiction over the United States, ordered the Trump administration to ensure that sanctions against Iran, due to be tightened on Nov. 4, do not affect humanitarian aid or civil aviation safety.
Iran brought a case to the International Court of Justice claiming that the United States violated the treaty by the imposition of sanctions after President Donald Trump terminated the Iran nuclear deal. Pompeo called Tehran’s case before the court “meritless” and accused Iran of abusing the ICJ for political purposes.
Pompeo told reporters in Washington on Oct. 3 that the United States should have quit the amity treaty long ago, considering that Iran had frequently violated its terms.
“This is a decision, frankly, that is 39 years overdue,” Pompeo said. “Given Iran’s history of terrorism, ballistic missiles activities, and other malign behavior, Iran’s claims under the treaty are absurd.”
Pompeo blamed Iran for the attacks on American embassies in Iraq, characterizing the assaults as Tehran’s response to Washington’s efforts to constrain the Islamic regime’s malign behavior.
“Our intelligence in this regard is solid. We can see the hand of the Ayatollah and his henchmen supporting these attacks on the United States,” Pompeo said.
The secretary of state ordered the relocation of embassy personnel from Basra, Iraq, on Sept. 28. He noted that the United State will continue delivering clean drinking water to Basra’s 750,000 residents. The State Department is working closely with the Treasury to ensure that humanitarian transactions and aid “can and will continue” despite the sanctions.
“I hope that Iran’s leaders will come to recognize that the only way to secure for its country is by seizing their campaign of terror and destruction,” Pompeo said.
President Dwight Eisenhower signed the amity treaty with Iran in 1955, long before the 1979 Islamic revolution that turned the two countries into archenemies. The treaty consists of 23 articles which establish peace between the two nations and friendly terms for travel, trade, and consular relations.
The State Department maintains that Iran is pursuing a ballistic missile program, funding terrorism worldwide, conducting illicit financial activities, threatening maritime security, conducting cyberattacks, abusing human rights, and exploiting the environment.
Iran’s Foreign Ministry said the court’s decisions “proved once again the Islamic Republic is right and the U.S. sanctions against people and citizens of our country are illegal and cruel.
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