Gulf States Join Calls for Iran Arms Embargo Extension

In a rare joint statement, the six-country Gulf Cooperation Council (GCC) submitted a plea to the U.N. Security Council to extend the contested Iran arms embargo set to expire in October, The Times of Israel reported Sunday.

The letter from the gulf states of Bahrain, Kuwait, Oman, Qatar, Saudi Arabia, and the United Arab Emirates charges that Iran has "not ceased or desisted from armed interventions in neighboring countries, directly and through organizations and movements armed and trained by Iran."

"As such, it is inappropriate to lift the restrictions on conventional weapons’ movement to and from Iran until it abandons its destabilizing activities in the region and ceases to provide weapons to terrorist and sectarian organizations," the statement adds.

The GCC letter is an added push to Washington’s renewed focus on Iran. Last week, the White House and Secretary of State Mike Pompeo undertook a final effort at extending the embargo, which restricts Tehran's ability to buy and sell military arms.

Muscled-up sanctions on Iran also come as U.S. counterintelligence officials have revealed Tehran’s operations to interfere with the 2020 election. A Friday report from the office of the Director of National Intelligence concluded that Iran plans to spread disinformation to prevent President Donald Trump’s reelection.

"Driven by a perception that President Trump’s reelection would result in a continuation of U.S. pressure on Iran in an effort to foment regime change," Iran will continue spreading anti-U.S. information online, the report says.

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