Iranian Foreign Minister Seyed Abbas Araghchi has described Iran as a victim of “illegal, aggressive, and terrorist actions” by the United States and the Israeli regime, despite Tehran’s firm commitment to diplomacy and negotiation.
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Araghchi, who is in New York to attend the annual session of the UN General Assembly, made the remarks on Friday during the 27th informal meeting of the Council of Ministers of the Economic Cooperation Organization (ECO), chaired by Pakistan.
He expressed appreciation to Pakistan and the ECO Secretariat and underscored the importance of strengthening regional cooperation among member states.
Following is the full text of the Iranian foreign minister’s address to the meeting:
Honorable Deputy Prime Minister and Minister Ishaq Dar,
Honorable Secretary General Majeed Khan,
Distinguished fellow Ministers / Heads of Delegation,
At the outset, I would like to express my sincere appreciation to the Islamic Republic of Pakistan and to the ECO Secretariat for convening this important meeting. It is my pleasure to be in this gathering of the ECO family.
However, this meeting is convened at a time of growing uncertainty and fragmentation, with international law and international humanitarian law being violated by waging illegal and unwarranted wars and acts of aggression.
Distinguished Colleagues,
Despite our firm commitment to diplomacy and negotiations, the Islamic Republic of Iran fell victim to unlawful, unjustified acts of terrorist aggression by the United States and the Zionist regime on 13 June 2025 and 28 February 2026.
As a result, the Supreme Leader of the Islamic Republic of Iran, along with a number of senior military commanders and more than 4,000 Iranian civilians, were martyred. Such atrocities also claimed the lives of 168 innocent schoolchildren at a primary school in Minab City, while numerous infrastructure facilities, including hospitals, civil airports, and historical monuments, were targeted.
With the remarkable resistance of the Iranian armed forces and the Iranian people, together with broad support from the international community, particularly from the ECO region, none of the aggressors’ objectives were achieved.
Against this backdrop, Iran remains firmly committed to strengthening regional cooperation and solidarity. We believe that ECO can play a more active role in promoting peace, stability, connectivity, and sustainable development among its member states.
Excellencies,
Going back to ECO, our Organization has witnessed significant progress in recent years. A number of important meetings that had been suspended for several years — including Ministerial Meetings on Trade, Interior, and Environment, among others — were successfully convened, and some others are in the pipeline.
At the same time, several important initiatives have moved forward. Adoption of the five-year roadmap for mining cooperation, the ten-year strategy for sustainable and resilient transport within the ECO region, and the initiation of the process to amend the ECOTA Agreement are a number of successful examples of our collective resolve for a better and brighter future. At the forefront of these efforts is the ECO Vision for the coming decade, which is currently being finalized with a view to ensuring its feasibility, measurability, and effective implementation. We hope that the document will be considered for approval at the 18th summit in Tehran.
Significant progress has also been made in the development of transport infrastructure and regional connectivity. The expansion of ECO corridors and their growing links with major cargo and logistics hubs, including those connected to China, are strengthening the region’s role in international trade and transit networks.
Regional tourism has also continued to expand, according to available statistics. At the same time, intra-regional trade has maintained a positive growth trajectory. These developments demonstrate that, despite the challenges, the foundations for deeper economic integration within the ECO region are steadily strengthening. However, energy, human resources, agriculture and industries, environment, and other subjects remain crucial priorities for the ECO region.
Thanks to the commitment of member states as well as the robust and dynamic leadership of the Secretariat, headed by Ambassador Majeed Khan, ECO is gaining valuable momentum.
Distinguished Heads of Delegations,
As you are well aware, my country is preparing to host the 18th ECO Summit in Tehran on 3 and 4 December 2026; therefore, the significance of this highest level of ECO exposure is extremely important across the region and outside. We firmly believe the invaluable contributions of the ECO leaders would be a proper message to our people as well as the international community.
Ladies and Gentlemen,
In conclusion, I pray to Almighty God that peace, security, and prosperity prevail across the world, and that we see an end to any unilateral coercive measures as well as aggressions, which are the root causes of instability and insecurity.
Thank you for your kind attention.
