Europe powers move to reimpose UN sanctions on Iran over nuclear drive

Paris: France, Britain and Germany on Thursday triggered a mechanism to reimpose United Nations sanctions on Iran for failing to comply with commitments over its nuclear programme.

The three countries notified the UN Security Council that they "believe Iran to be in significant non-performance of its commitments" under a 2015 nuclear deal, according to a letter seen by AFP.

Their foreign ministers said they "hereby invoke the process known as the 'snapback' mechanism," which initiates a 30-day process for reimposing sanctions suspended a decade ago.

Iran’s Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi said yesterday Tehran would respond to a decision by the three countries to trigger the mechanism reimposing sanctions.

“The Islamic Republic of Iran will respond appropriately to this illegal and unjustified action by the three European countries, in order to protect and guarantee its national rights and interests,” Araghchi told his French, British and German counterparts in a phone call, according to a statement from his ministry.

What is ‘Snapback’?

• A mechanism from the 2015 Iran nuclear deal (JCPOA)

• Allows suspended UN sanctions to be automatically reimposed if Iran breaches the accord

• Veto-proof at the UN Security Council — cannot be blocked by Russia or China

• Measures include:

o Freezing Iranian assets abroad

o Halting arms sales

o Penalising ballistic missile development

Why now?

• France, Germany, and the UK triggered snapback after Iran blocked IAEA inspections and continued uranium enrichment at 60% purity (near weapons-grade).

• The mechanism expires on Oct. 18 — after that, Russia and China could veto sanctions.

• Israel’s June strikes on Iran’s nuclear sites and Iran’s refusal to cooperate with inspectors spurred urgency.

What it means for Iran

• Further pressure on Iran’s shattered economy — the rial has collapsed from 32,000/$1 in 2015 to over 1 million/$1 today.

• Cuts Iran off from arms and tech, hitting its missile and nuclear programs.

• Risks pushing Iran to end cooperation with the IAEA entirely.

The move comes just over two months after the end of a 12-day war between Israel and Iran which Israel said was aimed at degrading Tehran's nuclear as well as ballistics capabilities.

It also comes as the window for triggering the so-called snapback mechanism closes on October 18.

Western powers have for two decades feared that Iran is seeking a nuclear weapon under the guise of an atomic energy programme, a charge vehemently denied by Tehran.

Iran has previously warned that cooperation with the UN nuclear watchdog would be affected if the mechanism was triggered.

In a joint statement, British Foreign Minister David Lammy, Germany's top diplomat Johann Wadephul and French counterpart Jean-Noel Barrot said that Iran's non-compliance with the 2015 nuclear deal was "clear and deliberate".

They said Iran has "no civilian justification" for its high enriched uranium stockpile.

"Its nuclear programme therefore remains a clear threat to international peace and security," they added.

Barrot wrote on X that "Iran's nuclear escalation must not go any further" but emphasised the move "does not signal the end of diplomacy".

He noted there is now a 30-day period where talks can take place, adding "we are determined... to engage in dialogue with Iran".

The 2015 nuclear treaty was aimed at resolving the standoff over the Islamic republic's nuclear programme. 

But it was badly weakened when US President Donald Trump left the accord during his first mandate, and as accusations of Iranian non-compliance escalated.