Marking two years since US President Donald Trump pulled out of the Joint Comprehensive Plan of Action JCPOA, commonly known as the Iran nuclear deal, Washington has stepped up its diplomatic efforts to extend the arms embargo on Iran.
According to the nuclear deal and UN Resolution 2231, the arms embargo would be lifted in November.
Diplomats and officials at the UN, interviewed by Asharq Al-Awsat, said the US administration left no room for doubt that it would not allow the Iranian regime to return to importing deadly weapons that are used to "destabilize" Gulf region and the Middle East.
Officials confirmed that the US will work on drafting a new resolution for voting in the UN Security Council before the deadline in October 2020.
Fearing that China or Russia may veto the resolution, the US will seek to trigger the “snapback” provision in the 2015 Security Council resolution endorsing the nuclear deal, which would restore all UN sanctions against Iran that had been lifted or eased under the terms of the agreement.
Europeans acknowledge the dangers of the ballistic missiles file and Iran’s role in sabotaging peace in the Middle East, but they consider that applying pressure on the mullah regime must go in parallel to preserving the nuclear deal. The US considers that impossible.
Iran has been under an arms embargo since March 2007 under Resolution 1747. This was renewed in 2010 by Resolution 1929. These decisions were passed unanimously at the time. US diplomats working on Iran say that lifting the arms embargo five years after Resolution 2231 "was a big mistake."
Anthony Miranda, Counselor for Public Affairs at the US Mission to the United Nations, told Asharq Al Awsat that the Iranian regime spends public money on matters that do not benefit Iranians.
Miranda noted that Tehran constantly violates Resolution 2231, noting that Iran fires ballistic missiles against the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia, continues to arm Houthi insurgents in Yemen and funds the Hezbollah terrorist organization.
