Iran’s Supreme National Security Council on Saturday said it will suspend cooperation with the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) after the UN Security Council failed to adopt a draft resolution aimed at permanently lifting sanctions on Tehran.
The Security Council move came on Friday after Britain, France and Germany – known as the E3 – launched a 30-day process to reimpose sanctions, accusing Tehran of failing to abide by the 2015 Joint Comprehensive Plan of Action (JCPOA), which was meant to prevent it from developing a nuclear weapon. Iran denies having any such intention.
In a statement carried by state-run Press TV, Iran’s top security body condemned what it called “ill-considered” moves by the E3 regarding its nuclear program, which Tehran insists is peaceful.
President Masoud Pezeshkian vowed Iran would overcome any reimposition of sanctions through the “snapback” process.
“Through the 'snapback' they block the road, but it is the brains and the thoughts that open or build the road,” he said on Saturday in remarks carried by state television.
“We will never surrender in the face of excessive demands because we have the power to change the situation.”
Iran’s Supreme National Security Council separately warned that the country’s cooperation with the IAEA would “effectively be suspended” if the UN sanctions were reinstated.
Earlier this month, Iran and the UN nuclear watchdog said they had reached a deal on resuming inspections at sites including those bombed by the US and Israel but gave no specifics.
The "snapback" process would reimpose UN sanctions on Iran unless an agreement is reached on a delay between Tehran and key European powers within about a week.
If enforced, the snapback would reimpose an arms embargo, a ban on uranium enrichment and reprocessing, a ban on ballistic missile activity, as well as global asset freezes and travel bans on Iranian individuals and entities.
