US tells Israel it’ll ask UN to ‘snap back’ Iran sanctions Thursday – report
Pompeo to submit request after Security Council rejects bid to extend arms embargo; Washington argues it’s still party to nuclear deal and can therefore restore penalties
The Trump administration has reportedly told Israel that it will submit a request on Thursday for a controversial “snapback” to force a return of United Nations sanctions against Iran, after the Security Council rejected Washington’s bid to extend the arms embargo against the Islamic Republic.
US Secretary of State Mike Pompeo will travel to New York on Thursday and present formal letters to UN Secretary-General Antonio Guterres and UN Ambassador Dian Triansyah Djani from Indonesia, who currently holds the Security Council’s rotating presidency, the Walla news site reported Wednesday evening.
That will trigger the start of a 30-day consultation period during which any Security Council member can submit a request to stop the move, which can in turn be vetoed by the United States and has the potential to spark a diplomatic crisis.
The report said that the motivation behind pushing for renewed sanctions is to pressure Iran to withdraw from the nuclear deal, making it difficult for US presidential Democratic nominee Joe Biden to rebuild the agreement if he wins the election in November.
“Snapback” in the 2015 nuclear deal was envisioned in the event Iran was proven to be in violation of the accord, under which it received billions of dollars in sanctions relief in exchange for curbs on its nuclear program.
US President Donald Trump pulled out of the nuclear agreement, known as the JCPOA, in 2018, while the five other powers in the agreement — Russia, China, United Kingdom, France and Germany — remain committed to the agreement.
Despite quitting the deal, the US circulated a six-page memo last week from State Department lawyers arguing that it remains part of the 2015 Security Council resolution that endorsed the pact, and still has the right to use the snapback provision, a claim that China and Russia dispute.
The US is to request the snapback after the Security Council on Saturday defeated an American resolution to indefinitely extend the arms embargo against Iran. Only the Dominican Republican joined the US in supporting the resolution. Russia and China opposed it, while the remaining 11 members abstained.
Diplomats from several of the other signatories to the Iran deal had warned before the UN vote that extending the arms embargo would lead the Islamic Republic to exit the agreement and speed up its pursuit of nuclear weapons
In a statement last week, Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu called the vote to end the embargo “scandalous.”
“Iranian terrorism and aggression threaten the peace of the region and the entire world,” he said. “Instead of opposing weapons sales, the Security Council is encouraging them.” He said Israel would continue to cooperate with the US and act with “full force” against those who threaten it.
The Trump administration has said it will not allow the arms embargo provision in the Security Council resolution endorsing the 2015 nuclear agreement between Iran and six major powers to expire as scheduled October 18.
