In a decisive move Friday, the United Nations Security Council rejected a final attempt by Russia and China to delay the reimposition of sanctions on Iran, just one day before the deadline, The Associated Press reported.
The Security Council rejected a resolution presented by Russia and China that would have given Iran a six-month extension before sanctions are reimposed.
The sanctions, part of the 2015 nuclear deal’s “snapback” mechanism, will freeze Iranian assets abroad, halt arms transactions, and penalize ballistic missile development—further straining Iran’s already battered economy.
The E3 nations - Britain, France, and Germany - triggered the snapback last month, citing Iran’s failure to meet the accord’s terms. Despite weeks of high-level talks, no diplomatic breakthrough was achieved. A European diplomat told AP the discussions “did not produce any new developments, any new results.”
Iranian Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi, who met with his European counterparts in the lead-up to the UN General Assembly, lamented the outcome. “The E3 has failed to reciprocate,” he posted Friday, accusing the US of doubling down on its “dictates.” He urged the Security Council to vote for an extension to allow “time and space for diplomacy.”
Iran’s Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei had already cast doubt on negotiations, declaring peace talks with the US “a sheer dead end.” This statement, made before Araghchi and President Masoud Pezeshkian arrived in New York, effectively stifled any last-minute diplomatic overtures.
The looming sanctions are expected to escalate already heightened tensions between Iran and the West. Tehran’s next move remains uncertain, though officials have previously threatened to withdraw from the Nuclear Nonproliferation Treaty - a path once taken by North Korea in 2003 before it developed nuclear weapons.
(Israel National News' North American desk is keeping you updated until the start of Shabbat in New York. The time posted automatically on all Israel National News articles, however, is Israeli time.)