United Nations Security Council chambers at UN world head quarters in New York

By Gary Raynaldo    DIPLOMATIC TIMES

UNITED NATIONS  –  NEW  YORK –   The UN Security Council Friday  voted against a U.S. resolution to extend indefinitely an arms embargo against Iran.  The proposal only managed to garner two votes in favor – the United States and the Dominican Republic. Russia and China voted against the measure, and the other 11 council members abstained. A resolution needs at least nine positive votes and no vetoes to be adopted.  The US even  introduced a last-minute watered down resolution Wednesday in an effort to to garner  more support on the  Council that stated it would simply extend the embargo “until the Security Council decides otherwise” .   U.S. Secretary of State Mike Pompeo immediately attacked the U.N. Security Council for failing to adopt the resolution as “inexcusable.”

“The United Nations Security Council is charged with the responsibility of maintaining international peace and security. It failed today to uphold its fundamental mission set. It rejected a reasonable resolution to extend the 13-year old arms embargo on Iran and paved the way for the world’s leading state sponsor of terrorism to buy and sell conventional weapons without specific UN restrictions in place for the first time in over a decade. The Security Council’s failure to act decisively in defense of international peace and security is inexcusable.”

-Secretary of State Pompeo

U.S. Threatens To Invoke “Snap Back” Mechanism To Restore All UN Sanctions on Iran

The UN  banned Iran from buying major foreign weapon systems in 2010 amid tensions over its nuclear program. In 2018,  President Donald Trump’s 2018 withdrew  from the 2015 nuclear deal between six major powers and Iran, aimed at preventing Iranian development of nuclear weapons. The Trump administration then launched its campaign to make the arms embargo, which is set to expire Oct. 18, 2020,  permanent. Pompeo had suggested, if the resolution failed,  the US would invoke the  highly controversial “snap back” mechanism in the 2015 nuclear deal that would restore all UN sanctions on Iran.

Ambassador Craft Says U.S.  Is  “Sickened”   By  UN Vote

Credit:  Gary Raynaldo / ©Diplomatic Times / Ambassador Kelly Craft Permanent Representative U.S. Mission to the United Nations

“The worst tendency of the United Nations was on display in the Security Council”

U.S. Ambassador Kelly Craft – Aug. 14, 2020

Today, the United States stands sickened – but not surprised – as the clear majority of Council members gave the green light to Iran to buy and sell all manner of conventional weapons. The Council’s failure today will serve neither peace nor security. Rather, it will fuel greater conflict and drive even more insecurity.”

Ambassador Craft sharply criticized the UN’s failure to adopt the U.S. resolution.  “Failing to step up to this moral challenge validates the world’s number one state sponsor of terror, just to save face and protect a failed political deal made outside the Council. A flawed deal, it is worth noting, under which Iran remains in significant non-performance of its commitments,” Ambassador Craft said.

“Under Resolution 2231, the United States has every right to initiate snapback of provisions of previous Security Council resolutions. In the coming days, the United States will follow through on that promise to stop at nothing to extend the arms embargo.”

“Snapback” Mechanism is Uncharted Territory 

The “snapback” mechanism has never been utilized by the Security Council, as it is foreign to the Iran deal, and it is not clear about its application.  The remaining parties to the Iran agreement contend that the US has no legal right to use the mechanism.  China, Russia, Britain, France and Germany  have taken the position that once the US walked away from the JCPOA,  since they are the remaining parties to JCPOA, the US has no legal ground to stand on to even be  involved in the deal.