European allies attack Trump admin over bid to restore sanctions on Iran

The Trump administration ran into immediate opposition after its top diplomat officially informed the United Nations it is demanding the restoration of all UN sanctions on Iran. Allies and opponents declared the US action illegal and doomed to failure.
 

US Secretary of State Mike Pompeo insisted that the United States has the legal right to “snap back” UN sanctions even though US President Donald Trump pulled out of the 2015 nuclear deal between Iran and six major powers that was endorsed by the UN Security Council.
 

Russia and China, along with European allies Britain, France and Germany, who often disagree, are united in declaring the US action “illegal” on grounds that you can't withdraw from a deal and then use the resolution that endorsed it to re-impose sanctions.
 

How this dispute plays out in the weeks ahead remains to be seen, but Thursday's US move set the stage for a showdown in the United Nations that could lead to a crisis of credibility for the Security Council, its most important and powerful body.

Pompeo came to the UN to deliver a letter to Indonesia’s ambassador to the UN, Dian Triansyah Djani, whose country currently holds the rotating council presidency. It cited significant Iranian violations of the 2015 Joint Comprehensive Plan of Action, or JCPOA, a requirement to “snap back” UN sanctions.
 

“No country but the United States has had the courage and conviction to put forward a resolution. Instead, they chose to side with the Ayatollahs,” Pompeo said after formally submitting the complaint. He said the US would do everything it could to enforce the sanctions.
 

Snapback: What does this mean?
 

Why is the arms embargo in Iran expiring?
 

The UN Security Council imposed an arms embargo on Iran in 2007. The embargo is due to expire in mid-October, as agreed to under the 2015 nuclear deal among Iran, Russia, China, Germany, Britain, France and the US. That accord is enshrined in a 2015 UNSC resolution. In 2018, US President Donald Trump quit the deal. The US failed last Friday in its bid to extend the embargo at the Security Council.
 

What does this mean for the 2015 nuclear deal?
 

The remaining parties to the nuclear deal have said they are committed to maintaining the 2015 agreement.
 

What sanction would snap back?
 

The arms embargo, ban on Iran from developing n-capable ballistic missiles and targeted sanctions on dozens of individuals and entities
 

How does the US trigger a sanction snapback?
 

If a UNSC resolution extending sanctions relief on Iran is not adopted within the next 30 days, sanctions are supposed to be reimposed. A vote on such a resolution will allow the US to cast a veto and give it a cleaner argument that the snapback has been executed.