UN Security Council votes to reimpose 'snapback' sanctions on Iran

Sanctions will resume on September 27, barring diplomatic breakthrough at next week's UN General Assembly

The UN Security Council voted on Friday on a measure that means sweeping economic sanctions will be imposed on Iran over its nuclear programme.

The move triggers the so-called snapback mechanism, meaning that all UN sanctions in place before the 2015 nuclear accord will resume on September 27.

Measures include a conventional arms embargo, restrictions on ballistic missile development, asset freezes, travel bans and a prohibition on the transfer of nuclear-related technology.

A resolution to permanently lift sanctions failed, with four in favour, nine against and two abstentions. The resolution had been introduced by South Korea, which is chairing the Security Council this month. Russia, China, Algeria and Pakistan voted in favour.

The return of sanctions will further isolate Iran as it grapples with mounting economic strain and political unrest. The move was initiated by the UK, France and Germany, known as the E3.

Iran's UN envoy Amir-Saeid Iravani told council members that Tehran had implemented the nuclear “deal in full and in good faith”.

“It was the E3 that failed to meet their obligation, hiding behind empty promises while quietly following Washington's lead and instructions, and now in a striking display of hypocrisy, they claim that Iran must be punished for measures we took only after years of enduring their violations,” Mr Iravani said.

“We cannot have any precondition. Just no, but we are ready for diplomacy, and the door of diplomacy will open forever, but we will decide to whom and on what basis we should negotiate,” Iran's envoy told reporters

In a letter to the Security Council last month, Britain, France and Germany accused Tehran of multiple violations of the deal, known as the Joint Comprehensive Plan of Action, including amassing a uranium stockpile more than 40 times the agreement's limit.

Western powers and Israel have long accused Tehran of pursuing nuclear weapons, an allegation Iran rejects.

Iran’s Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi said on Friday that he had presented a “fair and balanced” proposal to European powers aimed at averting the return of sanctions.

After the first Trump administration quit the accord in 2018, Iran steadily rolled back its compliance, expanding enrichment and other nuclear activity.

Tensions escalated further after the 12-day war with Israel in June, which halted US-Iran nuclear talks and led Tehran to cut off co-operation with the International Atomic Energy Agency.

IAEA inspectors from the Vienna-based watchdog left the country soon after.

On Thursday, Iran withdrew a draft resolution at the IAEA seeking to ban attacks on nuclear sites, a move diplomats said followed US pressure in the wake of its conflict with Israel.

“We urge [Iran] to act now,” said Britain's UN ambassador Barbara Woodward after voting against the resolution that would have extended the current suspension of the sanctions.

Maya Ungar, a UN analyst at the International Crisis Group, told The National that the diplomatic window has not closed completely, and parties have time for last-minute negotiations.

Iranian President Masoud Pezeshkian is expected to attend the UN annual gathering next week, which may represent the last opportunity for talks before the sanctions formally take effect.

Ms Ungar said the most likely outcome is that diplomats will fail to reach an extension. Russia and its allies have already challenged the legal legitimacy of the European powers to trigger the snapback, arguing they too failed to meet JCPOA obligations, and that split could see some countries enforcing sanctions while others reject them, undermining the authority of the UN system.

Such divisions, Ms Ungar added, may have a paradoxical stabilising effect. If Iran and its partners refuse to acknowledge the sanctions as restored, Tehran may avoid pulling out of the Non-Proliferation Treaty, a step that could provoke Israel and risk reigniting this summer’s conflict.