Comprehensive UN sanctions against Iran were re-imposed late Saturday night for the first time in 10 years, following the breakdown of talks between the Islamic Republic and Western powers over Iran's nuclear program.
The sanctions, which ban transactions related to Iran's nuclear and missile programs, along with other measures, automatically took effect at 8:00 PM New York time on Saturday (12:00 GMT Sunday), ten years after they were lifted, and are expected to have a broader impact on the economy.
Iran and major powers reached an agreement on its nuclear program in 2015, which lifted UN Security Council economic sanctions in exchange for restrictions on its nuclear activities.
However, the agreement became effectively null and void after Washington unilaterally withdrew from it in 2018, prompting Tehran to gradually backtrack on key provisions.
The 2015 agreement, known as the Joint Comprehensive Plan of Action (JCPOA), set a cap on uranium enrichment at 3.67%. However, Iran has become the only non-nuclear-weapon state enriching uranium to high levels (60%), close to the technical limit needed to produce a nuclear bomb (90%), according to the International Atomic Energy Agency.
According to the agency, Iran possesses approximately 440 kilograms of 60% enriched uranium, a stockpile sufficient, if enriched to 90%, to produce between eight and ten nuclear bombs, according to experts.
The United States and Iran held talks on a new agreement earlier this year. However, Tehran withdrew from the talks after Israel launched a large-scale attack in June, in which Washington intervened by targeting key nuclear facilities.
Iranian President Masoud Pezeshkian said Saturday that Washington had demanded that Tehran hand over "all" of its enriched uranium stockpile in exchange for extending the lifting of sanctions.
He told reporters in New York, where he participated in the UN General Assembly, that the United States "wants us to hand over all our enriched uranium in exchange for a three-month sanctions waiver... That is unacceptable in any way."
He added, "In a few months, they will have new demands and will say (Majd Da) that they want to activate the sanctions mechanism."
- Western "Sabotage" -
The Security Council gave the green light for this move, and a joint Russian-Chinese effort failed Friday night to extend the deadline. As a result, sanctions were reimposed Saturday night.
In protest of these developments, Tehran recalled its ambassadors to France, Germany, and Britain "for consultations," Iranian state media reported Saturday.
On Saturday, Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov accused Western countries of "sabotaging" diplomatic efforts.
From the UN podium, he said that the Security Council's rejection of the Russian-Chinese proposal on Friday "demonstrated the West's policy of sabotaging the continuation of constructive solutions," denouncing what he considered "blackmail."
German Foreign Minister Johannes Vadephul said his country, which initiated the reimposition of sanctions along with Britain and France, "has no choice" because Iran has not complied with its obligations.
He added, "But let me emphasize: We remain open to negotiations on a new agreement. Diplomacy can and should continue."
In a joint statement, the foreign ministers of the European Troika called on Iran to "refrain from any escalatory action" with the reimposition of sanctions.
US Secretary of State Marco Rubio called on Iran on Saturday to agree to direct talks with the United States.
"Diplomacy remains an option... and reaching an agreement remains the best outcome for the Iranian people and the world," Rubio said in a statement.
- Growing Difficulties -
In Tehran, the return of sanctions raises fears of additional economic hardship.
"The situation is very difficult now, but it will get worse," Dariush, a 50-year-old engineer, told AFP. "The impact of the return of sanctions is already there: the exchange rate (of the rial against the dollar) has risen, and this is leading to higher prices."
The exchange rate reached a record high of 1.12 million rials to the dollar on Saturday. An AFP journalist observed an unusually high demand for gold in the Tehran Bazaar.
Dariush added, "Most people fear a new war because of" the reimposition of sanctions, referring to what happened in June.
Intensive meetings were held at the United Nations this week to seek a solution, notably through a meeting between French President Emmanuel Macron and Pezeshkian. However, the Europeans believed that Iran had not taken the "concrete measures" required of it.
The European countries set three conditions, including demanding that the Islamic Republic grant International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) inspectors full access to key nuclear facilities, resume negotiations, particularly with Washington, and adopt a mechanism to ensure the security of its enriched uranium stockpile.
After suspending work with the IAEA following the June attacks, Iran again accepted a new framework for cooperation with the agency in early September.
The IAEA reported Friday night that inspections at some nuclear sites had resumed this week.
Iranian Foreign Minister Abbas Araqchi accused the Americans and Europeans of "bad faith," stressing that Tehran "will never yield" to pressure over its nuclear program.
The Iranian president, for his part, affirmed that Tehran will not withdraw from the Nuclear Non-Proliferation Treaty in response to sanctions.
The Iranians, like the Russians and Chinese, consider the reimposition of sanctions against their country illegal.
- "No trigger" -
In light of these developments, observers fear that some countries, most notably Russia, may decide to distance themselves from the Security Council's decision to reimpose sanctions, a hypothesis alluded to on Friday by Russia's Deputy Ambassador to the United Nations, Dmitry Polyansky.
After the Council's vote, he said, "There is no trigger, and there will be no trigger. Any attempt to revive anti-Iran resolutions... adopted before 2015 is null and void."
For years, the nuclear issue has been a source of tension between Tehran and Western countries, primarily the United States and Israel, which accuse the Islamic Republic of seeking to acquire a nuclear bomb, a claim Iran denies.
This week, from the podium of the General Assembly, Pezeshkian reiterated that "Iran has never sought and will never seek to build a nuclear bomb. We do not want nuclear weapons."
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