Russia calls for condemnation of US-Israeli strikes on key Iranian nuclear sites

ISTANBUL

Russia said Saturday that recent US-Israeli strikes on facilities in the Iranian cities of Ardakan, Bushehr and Khondab -- home to key nuclear-related infrastructure -- should draw strong international condemnation.

“These attacks deserve unequivocal and resolute condemnation from the entire international community. Egregious violations of international law continue, and those responsible for such outrages must understand this,” Foreign Ministry spokeswoman Maria Zakharova said in a statement.

Zakharova’s remarks came after strikes Friday targeted a yellowcake production facility in Ardakan and the Khondab heavy water facility, as well as amid reports of attacks near the Bushehr Nuclear Power Plant.

She said the leadership of the International Atomic Energy Agency, or IAEA, “must speak more clearly about the seriousness of the threat that Iran’s adversaries are trying to ignore, if not deny.”

Zakharova expressed hope that International Atomic Energy Agency Director General Rafael Grossi would convey the need to halt such strikes after receiving information from Iranian authorities about developments on the ground.

She also said the attacks “simply invalidate the (Nuclear) Non-Proliferation Treaty, IAEA verification mechanisms, nuclear safety and security conventions, and the agency’s relevant standards.”

“We strongly condemn this destructive course. Those who are pursuing it must stop immediately,” she added.

Separately, Alexey Likhachev, head of Russia’s state nuclear corporation Rosatom, said Saturday that the situation at the Bushehr power plant continues to deteriorate, with munitions exploding for the third time near a pumping station supplying water to reactor equipment, as state news agency Tass reported.