The 120-nation Nonaligned Movement (NAM), headed by Iran, accused
the United States Supreme Court on Thursday of violating international
law by ruling that nearly $2 billion in frozen Iranian assets can be
paid to victims of attacks linked to the country.
A
communique issued by the NAM’s Coordinating Bureau follows an Iranian
appeal to the United Nations last week to intervene with the US
government to prevent the loss of their funds. Iran’s Foreign Minister
Mohammad Javad Zarif called the ruling an “outrageous robbery, disguised
under a court order.”
The NAM, comprising
mainly developing countries, called the US waiver of “the sovereign
immunity of states and their institutions” a violation of US
international and treaty obligations.
It
called on the US government “to respect the principle of state immunity”
and warned that failing to do so will have “adverse implications,
including uncertainty and chaos in international relations.” It also
warned that a failure would also undermine the international rule of law
“and would constitute an international wrongful act, which entails
international responsibility.”
The US
Supreme Court ruled on April 23 that the families of victims of a 1983
bombing in Lebanon and other attacks linked to Iran can collect nearly
$2 billion in frozen funds from Iran as compensation.
The
court’s ruling directly affects more than 1,300 relatives of victims,
some who have been seeking compensation for more than 30 years. They
include families of the 241 US service members who died in the bombing
of the Marine barracks in Beirut.
Iran
denies any links to the attacks. Iran’s UN Ambassador Gholamali Khoshroo
asked that Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon circulate the NAM statement to
the UN General Assembly and Security Council.
The NAM called for “dialogue and accommodation over coercion and confrontation” to peacefully settle disputes.
In
last week’s letter, Iran’s Zarif appealed to secretary-general Ban to
use his good offices “to induce the US government to adhere to its
international obligations, put an end to the violation of the
fundamental principle of state immunity.”
State
Department spokesman Mark Toner said in response that “US laws and the
application of those laws by the courts of the United States comport
with international law.”
UN spokesman Stephane Dujarric said Thursday
that the letter is being studied. Iran has also complained to the United
States that it is locked out of the international financial system.
It
accused the US of failing to fulfill its obligations under last year’s
nuclear deal which was supposed to give the Iranians relief from
crippling economic sanctions in exchange for curbing their nuclear
program.
US Secretary of State John Kerry,
who met Zarif on April 22, said the United States would not stand in
the way of foreign banks or firms doing business with Iranian companies
that are no longer subject to US sanctions. He said the administration
was willing to further clarify what transactions are now permitted with
Iran, and he urged foreign financial institutions to seek answers from
US officials if they have questions.
