The United Kingdom’s ambassador to the United Nations said on Monday that London and other European parties are prepared to reinstate sanctions on Iran should it continue to advance its nuclear programme.
“Given Iran’s dangerous advances which have brought it to the brink of being able to develop a weapon, this situation should be of grave concern for this council,” Ambassador Barbara Woodward told a UN Security Council meeting focusing on implementation of the 2015 Joint Comprehensive Plan of Action (JCPOA), commonly known as the Iran nuclear deal.
The JCPOA, given the force of international law by a Security Council resolution, included what’s known as a “snap back” mechanism, whereby any signatory to the accord can claim Iran is in violation of its terms, almost inevitably leading to the restoration of the sanctions in place before the pact’s signing.
The effect of those snap-back measures, though, have faded over time as Tehran has pocketed hundreds of billions of dollars due to the expiry of several critical sanctions.
