Russia condemns U.S. strikes on Iranian nuclear facilities

In a stern rebuke, Russia's Foreign Ministry unequivocally denounced the United States' attacks on Iran's nuclear facilities. The ministry's statement, issued on Sunday, June 22, criticized the strikes as "a violation of international law," referring to the operations as reckless and in contravention of globally accepted norms.

According to the released statement, the decision to launch missile and bomb strikes on the territory of a sovereign nation, regardless of the pretext, blatantly breaches international law, the UN Charter, and UN Security Council resolutions, which have previously categorized such actions as unacceptable. The Russian Foreign Ministry highlighted the particular concern that the strikes were carried out by a country that is a permanent member of the UN Security Council.

The ministry also warned of a "dangerous escalation cycle," emphasizing that the risk of conflict expansion in the Middle East, a region already engulfed in multiple crises, has significantly increased.

Moscow asserted that the assaults on Iran's nuclear sites have "inflicted enormous damage" to the Treaty on the Non-Proliferation of Nuclear Weapons and the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA). "We expect a prompt, professional, and honest response from the leadership of the Agency, with no evasive language or attempts to disguise political equidistance," the ministry said, calling for a report from the IAEA Director General and a reaction from the UN Security Council.

"It is necessary to collectively reject confrontational actions by the U.S. and Israel. We urge an end to aggression and the amplification of efforts to steer the situation back onto a political and diplomatic course," the ministry concluded.

On the night of June 22, the U.S. military launched strikes on Iran's nuclear program facilities, effectively supporting Israel, which had commenced bombing these sites earlier. U.S. President Donald Trump announced that key Iranian nuclear facilities – Fordo, Natanz, and Isfahan – were "completely and entirely destroyed."

In response, Iran stated that all three struck nuclear facilities had been evacuated some time before the U.S. attacks. "Stocks of enriched uranium were removed from the nuclear centers, and no materials remained that could cause radiation or harm to our compatriots," said Hassan Abedini, deputy head of Iran's state broadcasting company.

Meanwhile, the IAEA reported that it had found no evidence of increased radiation levels following the U.S. strikes. "After the attacks on three nuclear sites in Iran, including Fordo, the IAEA can confirm that there has been no recorded increase in radiation levels outside the site," said the organization's statement.