UNITED NATIONS: The United Nations Security Council will vote Friday on reimposing deep economic sanctions on Iran over its resurgent nuclear program.
Britain, France and Germany allege that Iran has broken its promises under the 2015 Joint Comprehensive Plan of Action intended to stop Tehran obtaining nuclear weapons.
Diplomatic sources expect the resolution will not secure the nine votes needed to uphold the status quo where sanctions remain lifted.
French President Emmanuel Macron said he expected international sanctions against Iran to be reinstated by the end of the month.
“The latest news we had from the Iranians are not serious,“ he said in an excerpt from an Israeli television interview broadcast Thursday.
The European powers slammed Iran in a mid-August letter for building up a uranium stock to more than 40 times the permitted level.
Despite diplomatic talks, the Western trio insisted there was no concrete progress with Tehran.
Russia and China oppose the reinstatement of sanctions but may fail to secure sufficient Council support.
International Crisis Group analyst Richard Gowan said Algeria and Pakistan may support Russia and China while other members oppose or abstain.
The vote could result in sanctions imposition as early as next week though the UN’s high-level meeting offers negotiation opportunities.
“The Council still has time to greenlight a further resolution extending the suspension of sanctions — if Iran and the Europeans reach a last-minute bargain,“ Gowan said.
The 2015 deal collapsed after the United States under Donald Trump walked away in 2018 and reimposed sanctions. Western powers and Israel accuse Tehran of seeking nuclear weapons while Iran denies the claim.
Tehran gradually broke its commitments after the US withdrawal and stepped up nuclear activities amid high tensions since its June war with Israel.
The war derailed nuclear negotiations with the United States and prompted Iran to suspend cooperation with the IAEA. Trump attempted to trigger the snapback clause in 2020 but failed due to the US unilateral withdrawal.
European powers maintain they have unambiguous legal grounds to trigger the clause though Iran disputes this. Iran has threatened to withdraw from the Nuclear Non-Proliferation Treaty if the snapback is triggered. – AFP
