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‘Clearly escalatory': Opposition on US strikes on Iran nuclear sites
Several opposition parties Sunday criticised the US strikes on Iran's nuclear sites, with the Congress saying that the government should uphold the 'inviolability of national sovereignty and the two-state solution' as they are two fundamental postulates followed by the country traditionally.
Congress MP and general secretary of the party's foreign affairs department Manish Tewari told The Indian Express, 'The strikes are clearly escalatory and will further confound the dynamics in the Middle-East. It is unclear whether the strikes are in contravention of the US War Powers Resolutions, under which the authority to declare war is with the US Congress.'
He said the strikes also undermine the negotiations between the US and Iran, which were being mediated by Oman, and between Iran and European nations.
'It is also unclear whether Iran had any nuclear weapons in its possession… There were ghost WMDs (weapons of mass destruction) which became the basis of the attack on Iraq in 2003. Or for that matter the mass graves that were the cause of purported action against Libya by European powers under the specious R2P doctrine,' said Tewari.
The Congress has been vocal against Israel's strikes in Iran and its offensive in Gaza. CPP chairperson Sonia Gandhi Saturday criticised the government's silence on Israel's offensive in Gaza and Iran as 'not just a loss of its voice, but also a surrender of values'.
In an article in The Hindu titled 'It is still not too late for India's voice to be heard', she said the Narendra Modi government had abandoned India's long-standing and principled commitment to a peaceful two-nation solution envisioning an independent Palestine along with Israel.
She also criticized US President Donald Trump for following a 'destructive path' in West Asia.
SP chief Akhilesh Yadav said, 'the Central government is confused about foreign policy'. 'The government should clarify its stand on foreign policy. A friend is recognised in bad times. Not standing with someone who has always supported you in bad times is a betrayal.'
TMC MP Sagarika Ghose told The Indian Express that the 'need now is for diplomacy and de-escalation'. 'A volatile West Asia is not in anyone's interest. India can't just be a bystander…' she said.
AIMIM chief Asaduddin Owaisi called the US strikes a violation of international laws and Treaty on Non-Proliferation of Nuclear Weapons.
He said after the US bombing, some of the Arab countries in West Asia may go for nuclear weapons due to Israel's 'blackmailing and hegemony'. In a joint statement, the Left parties said, 'This is a grave violation of Iranian sovereignty and the UN Charter, and it will inflame global tensions, destabilise West Asia…'
