US Secretary of State Mike Pompeo has informed UN Secretary-General Antonio Guterres that Washington was concerned over the Iranian regime’s “destructive and disruptive activities” in the Middle East.
Pompeo and Guterres discussed in Washington “the denuclearization of the Korean peninsula, ongoing events in Venezuela, and the humanitarian crisis in Yemen, among other matters,” the Office of the State Department’s spokesperson said in a press release on Wednesday.
Pompeo “expressed concern that Iran’s destructive and disruptive activities across the Middle East undermine the UN’s efforts to resolve conflicts,” it added.
Asked by Asharq Al-Awsat about the talks between Guterres and Pompeo, the secretary-general’s spokesman, Stephane Dujarric, said discussions focused on “the need for strong cooperation between the United States and the United Nations.”
The talks also “addressed several issues of concern, such as Yemen and Venezuela.”
“The Secretary-General also provided the status update on the ongoing UN reform efforts and encouraged continuing United States engagement with the United Nations,” Dujarric added.
When asked to comment on the State Department statement on Iran, Dujarric said the UN does not object to the statement. But that the focus of the talks between Guterres and Pompeo was Yemen and Venezuela.
