Russia will not recognize the reinstatement of UN sanctions against Iran, said Russian Ambassador to the world body Vasily Nebenzia. He stressed that Moscow does not accept the decision and warned that the world will find itself in "two parallel realities" - for some the measures will work, for Russia - not, BTA reports.
The measures, which include an arms embargo and economic restrictions, were renewed on September 27 - ten years after they were lifted - following the failure of negotiations on Iran's nuclear program.
Despite the restrictions, the US and European countries emphasize that the diplomatic option remains open. US Secretary of State Marco Rubio called on Tehran to "direct and good-faith negotiations" and insisted on uniform application of sanctions. In a joint statement, the foreign ministers of Britain, France and Germany pledged to seek "a new formula to ensure that Iran never acquires a nuclear weapon."
According to the International Atomic Energy Agency, Iran is the only non-nuclear-weapon state that is enriching uranium to 60% - a level close to the threshold for producing a nuclear bomb. The agency estimates that Tehran has about 440 kg of uranium, which would allow the production of 8-10 nuclear warheads with further enrichment. The authorities in Tehran claim that the nuclear program is entirely peaceful.
President Masoud Pezeshkian said that Washington had offered to lift sanctions for three months in exchange for handing over its entire stockpile of enriched uranium - a condition he described as “unacceptable“.
The European Troika (E3) - Britain, France and Germany - triggered the snapback mechanism at the end of August, which led to the automatic reinstatement of sanctions. According to European diplomats, Iran has not made “substantial concessions“ on the key conditions: the resumption of negotiations with the United States, full access of inspectors to nuclear sites and guarantees of the safety of enriched uranium stocks.
Russia and China tried to extend the 2015 nuclear agreement by six months, but without success. Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov described the West's actions as “sabotage of diplomacy“ and declared the resumption of sanctions “legally invalid“.
The nuclear agreement (JCPOA) was signed in 2015 between Iran and six world powers powers, limiting Tehran's nuclear activities in exchange for sanctions relief. After the US withdrawal in 2018, Iran began to gradually violate some of its commitments.
“Iran has never sought and will not seek to create a nuclear bomb“, President Pezeshkian assured in a speech to the UN General Assembly.