The three European states invoked on Thursday the anti-Tehran snapback procedure, a clause enshrined in the 2015 Iran nuclear deal, officially known as the Joint Comprehensive Plan of Action (JCPOA), which reinstates pre-JCPOA era sanctions on Iran over claims of the Islamic Republic’s “significant non-compliance” with the landmark pact.
“We strongly urge them to reconsider and review their erroneous decisions before they lead to irreparable consequences and further tragedy,” Russia’s Foreign Ministry said in a statement on Friday.
The ministry also underlined that the European trio was undermining diplomatic efforts to find a peaceful solution to the stand-off over Iran’s nuclear program.
Moreover, the Chinese Foreign Ministry spokesman said a mechanism triggered by European countries that could reimpose United Nations sanctions on Iran was “not constructive.”
“The Iranian nuclear issue is at a critical juncture. Launching the Security Council’s snapback mechanism of sanctions is not constructive and will undermine the process of a political and diplomatic settlement of the Iranian nuclear issue,” Guo Jiakun told a regular press briefing.
Russia and China, both permanent members of the UN Security Council, are signatories to the JCPOA, which provided Iran with sanctions relief in exchange for curbs on its nuclear program.
Referenced in technical parlance as the Dispute Settlement Mechanism, the snapback procedure initiates a 30-day deadline for reimposing sanctions suspended under the 2015 accord.
Iranian Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi warned his European counterparts in a call that Tehran will respond appropriately to their “illegal and unjustified action.”
The US, under President Donald Trump, unilaterally walked out of the JCPOA in 2018 before returning the illegal sanctions that it had been removed against Tehran and the initiation of the so-called maximum pressure campaign.
Following the US withdrawal, the European parties to the JCPOA failed to uphold their commitments and made no efforts to save the agreement, prompting Iran to scale back its obligations.
Iran held five rounds of talks with Washington over the resolution of disputes regarding its peaceful nuclear program before June 13, when the US-Israeli-imposed war torpedoed the high-stakes negotiations.
