Luxembourg foreign minister Xavier Bettel has said he is “deeply concerned” about the new escalation of violence in the Middle East following targeted attacks by the Israeli air force on Iranian nuclear programme facilities and personnel.
Bettel criticised the timing of the air strikes, telling the Luxemburger Wort they had come at the very moment “when the USA and Iran are negotiating over the latter’s nuclear programme.” The Luxembourg government had welcomed the bilateral negotiations, and Bettel stressed that disputes should be resolved through diplomacy.
“This could be the beginning of a serious conflict between Israel and Iran, with consequences for the region and the rest of the world,” the foreign minister said. The fact that the US had only recently reduced embassy staff in the Middle East emphasised the seriousness of the current development, he added.
“If you look at the warnings of the last few days, they also show how worried the Americans themselves are about the potential for war between Israel and Iran,” Bettel explained, adding that he supports the position of UN Secretary-General António Guterres and calls on all parties involved to exercise restraint.
In April 2024, Bettel condemned an Iranian drone attack against Israel that was said to have been retaliation for an Israeli strike against the Iranian consulate in Syria.
Israel’s attacks come just days before a high-level UN summit on the two-state solution in New York. It is still unclear to what extent the latest events will affect this. Friday’s attack “shows how important it remains to use diplomatic means to de-escalate the situation in the Middle East,” Bettel said.
(This article was originally published by the Luxemburger Wort. Machine translated, with editing and adaptation by Duncan Roberts)