US President Donald Trump said on Wednesday that his administration will demand the restoration of all UN sanctions against Iran, after a failed bid at the UNSC to extend an arms embargo against Tehran.
Trump stated that Secretary of State Mike Pompeo is expected to travel to New York on Thursday to propose the measure to the UN Secretary-General Antonio Guterres due to Iran’s non-compliance with the 2015 nuclear deal. The ‘snapback’ mechanism was created in case of a violation by Tehran.
Whether such a proposal gains any traction remains to be seen, given that other countries have said that the US is in no position to make such a demand after its withdrawal from the agreement in 2018. However, the Trump administration maintains that, as an original participant in the accords and a P5 member, the US retains the right to invoke the sanctions mechanism.
The US’ position has been met with widespread criticism. Former National Security Advisor John Bolton has said that the US lost its standing when it pulled out of the deal and that moving ahead with such a proposition is not worth the damage it could do to the country’s credibility in the Security Council. It’s unclear how other council members will respond to the US.
The US also imposed sanctions on two UAE-based companies, Parthia Cargo and Delta Parts Supply FZC, on Wednesday, accusing them of providing material support in the form of key parts and logistical services to Iran’s Mahan Air, which is on the US’ blacklist. US Treasury Secretary Steven Mnuchin said that the airline serves as the Iranian regime’s “tool to spread its destabilizing agenda around the world, including to the corrupt regimes in Syria and Venezuela”, and stressed that the US would continue to punish those who supported the airline. Under the terms of the sanctions, the company’s US assets will be frozen, and American citizens will be forbidden to engage with it.
Other sanctions developments include the US preparing to ramp up pressure on President Nicolas Maduro in Venezuela, by imposing sanctions on the country’s oil and gold industries. Reuters quoted sources saying that the Trump administration, frustrated with the failure of restrictive measures to loosen Maduro’s grip on power, is looking to toughen up its stance on Venezuela by ending exceptions on sanctions that allow for some exports of Venezuelan oil.
US Insists on Restoring International Sanctions Against Iran
The move comes after a failed bid at the UNSC to extend an arms embargo against Tehran.
August 20, 2020
SOURCE: ECONOMIC TIMES/REUTERS