UN Security Council Rejects China-Russia Iran Nuclear Sanctions Extension

The U.N. Security Council failed to adopt a China- and Russia-backed resolution to extend sanctions relief under the 2015 Iran nuclear deal for six months, with the draft receiving four votes in favor, nine against and two abstentions. Britain, France and Germany triggered the JCPOA “snapback,” which—absent a last-minute deal—was set to reinstate a wide set of U.N. sanctions including a conventional arms embargo, ballistic missile restrictions, bans on uranium enrichment/reprocessing, asset freezes and travel bans. The legality of the European trio’s move is contested because they bypassed the deal’s Dispute Resolution Mechanism, which critics say could have had up to 35 days to address the dispute. Russia and China, joined by Algeria and Pakistan, condemned the council’s refusal to delay the snapback. Iran called the action unfair, unjust and illegal but kept diplomatic channels open as intensive diplomacy in New York failed to reach a deal. The reimposed measures were set to take effect over the weekend, raising questions about enforcement and escalating regional tensions.