WANA (Nov 16) – Iran’s foreign minister underscored that “in the jungle the United States has created, there is no law,” declaring that Iran will “stand to the very end” against any act of aggression and that its response will be “regret-inducing.”

On Sunday morning, November 16, Seyyed Abbas Araghchi attended the international conference “International Law Under Attack: Aggression and Defense,” held at the Institute for Political and International Studies of Iran’s Foreign Ministry.

The conference focused on the implications of recent security developments, efforts to redefine the global order, and the challenges facing the United Nations as it approaches its 80th anniversary.

Araghchi opened his speech by noting that “international law is under full-scale assault,” saying the world has entered a phase in which “the fundamental pillars of the post–World War II order are facing direct threats from major powers.”

Attacking the principles of international law

The foreign minister said that while many had expected the UN’s eighth decade to strengthen “commitment to the law,” current trends show the opposite.

According to him, the core pillars of international law—including the prohibition on the use of force, respect for state sovereignty, and limits on the use of military power—are under “the most severe pressure in decades.”

He added that Western powers in recent years have replaced law-based order with something they call a “rules-based order”: “These rules are neither universal nor grounded in legal principles; they reflect, above all, America’s short-term interests and political calculations.”

The international conference “International Law Under Assault: Aggression and Self-Defense” was inaugurated with the presence of Seyed Abbas Araghchi, the Minister of Foreign Affairs of the Islamic Republic of Iran, at the Center for Political and International Studies of the Foreign Ministry. Social media/ WANA News Agency

A “power-based order”: a trend taking shape

Araghchi warned that even the notion of “rules-based” order is fading, and what can be observed in practice is a “power-based order,” where military force and hard power dominate.

He said: “When violence and warfare become normalized, the results are nothing but expanding instability, arms races, and the elimination of diplomacy.”

Citing recent data, he noted that global military budgets have reached unprecedented levels, with states allocating on average 7% of their budgets to defense in 2024, a figure projected to reach 10% in 2025. He described this trend as “a clear sign of returning to the law of the jungle.”

Critique of the U.S. security doctrine

Araghchi criticized the U.S. doctrine of “peace through strength,” saying it has effectively turned into “hegemony through force.”

He noted that American officials openly speak in terms of “blatant supremacy” and make no effort to hide their disregard for international law. “The U.S. president openly says Washington simply wants to win, with no commitment to the very rules it once insisted on shaping.”

An Iranian woman walks past an anti-US mural on a street in Tehran, Iran, October 14, 2025. Majid Asgaripour/WANA (West Asia News Agency)

Israel’s attack and “the first bombs falling on diplomacy”

A significant portion of the minister’s remarks addressed Israel’s June 13 attacks on Iran. Araghchi said the strikes were carried out “under U.S. instruction and guidance,” and their first casualty was “the suspension of Iran–U.S. talks.”

Iran and the United States had held five rounds of negotiations prior to the attack, and a sixth round had been scheduled for  June 15 in Muscat.

Araghchi described the attack as “an ambush on the possibility of an agreement,” adding that the 12-day conflict has made “diplomacy the first victim.”

“No country is safe from Israel’s expansionist ambitions”

The foreign minister described Israel as “the United States’ agent” in West Asia, saying it has attacked “seven countries” over the past two years and even occupied new areas in several of them.

Referring to U.S. and European support, he added: “This regime has become emboldened in committing massacres, genocide, and widespread human rights violations because it feels backed by blank checks and political support from the West.”

People attend the funeral procession of Iranian military commanders, nuclear scientists and others killed in Israeli strikes, in Tehran, Iran, June 28, 2025. Majid Asgaripour/WANA (West Asia News Agency)

Affirming Iran’s right to self-defense

Araghchi stated that Iran’s response to U.S. and Israeli aggression was “fully within the framework of Article 51 of the UN Charter.”

He stressed that Iran’s operations were “proportionate, necessary, and precise,” and unlike Israeli actions, they did not target residential areas. “The Iranian nation is peace-seeking, but when war is imposed, it stands to the end and makes the aggressor regret it.”

He said the shift in the opposing side’s position—from “unconditional surrender” to “unconditional ceasefire” in just nine days—signals “Iran’s decisive response.”

Iranians walk next to an anti-Israel billboard on a street after the Israeli attack on Iran’s military targets in Tehran, Iran, October 26, 2024. Majid Asgaripour/WANA (West Asia News Agency)

The nuclear file and Iran’s compliance

The foreign minister reiterated that after the 2015 agreement, Iran fully met its obligations, as confirmed by 15 IAEA reports.

He described the U.S. withdrawal from the deal as the primary cause of the current situation.

Araghchi said Iran’s nuclear program is based on its “recognized right to enrichment” under the NPT, a right Iran has never relinquished.

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Two competing frameworks: the law of the jungle or a law-based order

In conclusion, Araghchi said the world faces “a crossroads between two paradigms”:

• A paradigm of force, hegemony, and securitization;

A paradigm of international law, convergence, and peaceful dispute settlement.

He said the Islamic Republic of Iran is committed to the latter approach and is ready to work with responsible countries—especially in the Global South—to bring the international order back onto a law-based path.

Regional security and Iran’s new doctrine

In his final remarks, Araghchi said regional security is “Iran’s own security,” and that Tehran seeks “a strong region based on shared understanding, cooperation, and peace.”

He stressed that “lasting trust” must be the basis of new regional interactions in West Asia.

Before Araghchi’s address, Saeed Khatibzadeh, the deputy foreign minister and head of the IPIS, described the global environment as “the most securitized period since World War II” and announced that the “Tehran Dialogue Forum” would be held May 2026.