Letter from the Director of the UNESCO Regional Centre for Oceanography to the IOC Executive Secretary Condemning the Recent Attacks on Iran

Dr. Vidar Helgesen
Executive Secretary of the Intergovernmental Oceanographic Commission (UNESCO/IOC)
UNESCO Assistant Director-General

Dear Dr. Helgesen,

We hereby express our deep concern and dissatisfaction regarding the recent military attacks by the Israeli regime and the United States of America against the Islamic Republic of Iran, which have had negative impacts on international scientific and educational cooperation, particularly in the fields of oceanography and marine sciences.

Due to these unlawful attacks, increased regional instability, security risks, and flight cancellations, our delegation was unable to attend the 2025 Session of the Assembly of the Intergovernmental Oceanographic Commission, held at UNESCO Headquarters from 24 June to 3 July.

Furthermore, many of the international activities of the UNESCO-supported Regional Centre for Training and Research in Oceanography for Western Asia (RCOWA) have been forced to cease, disrupting regional marine research and scientific capacity-development programmes.

We respectfully request that the Intergovernmental Oceanographic Commission convey our appeal to the Director-General of UNESCO, calling for the condemnation of these attacks and the disruption of scientific cooperation.

We believe in UNESCO’s unparalleled leadership in addressing these challenges and upholding the principles of international solidarity in science and education.

Respectfully,

Dr. Morteza Tavakoli
President of the National Institute for Oceanography and Atmospheric Sciences of Iran
and Director of the UNESCO-supported Regional Centre for Training and Research in Oceanography for Western Asia (RCOWA)