Daijiworld Media Network - Tehran

Tehran, Sep 28: Iran’s Foreign Ministry has strongly condemned the recent move by France, Britain, Germany (the E3), and the United States to reactivate United Nations Security Council sanctions against Tehran, labeling the action “illegal and unjustified.” This statement came shortly after UN sanctions, which were lifted under the 2015 nuclear agreement known as the Joint Comprehensive Plan of Action (JCPOA), were reinstated after a decade.

According to the ministry, Iran rejects the claims by the E3 and the US to restore previous UNSC resolutions that were terminated under Resolution 2231, which endorsed the JCPOA. The statement emphasized that these annulled sanctions no longer hold any binding force on UN member states, including Iran.

The ministry urged all countries not to recognize what it calls an “illegal situation” that contradicts Resolution 2231. It accused the E3 and the US of misusing the JCPOA’s dispute resolution mechanism to unfairly reimpose sanctions.

Iran warned it will vigorously defend its national interests and respond decisively to any attempts to undermine them.

In a letter to UN Secretary-General António Guterres, Iran’s Foreign Minister Seyed Abbas Araghchi described the activation of the “snapback” mechanism—which triggered the sanctions’ return—as a blatant procedural abuse.

Last month, the E3 formally initiated the snapback process, which allows UN sanctions to be reinstated within 30 days if Iran is judged to have violated the JCPOA.

Efforts to extend sanctions relief failed in the UN Security Council earlier this month. Both a resolution to continue sanctions relief and another proposing a six-month extension to the JCPOA and Resolution 2231 were rejected, paving the way for the sanctions to come back into effect on Saturday evening.