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he reimposition of the UN sanctions on Iran, initially imposed by the Security Council between 2006 and 2010, reflects the continued determination of the US-led West to subject Iran’s nuclear programme to arbitrary controls which go far beyond the requirements of the nuclear Non-Proliferation Treaty. These sanctions and others imposed by the US are ostensibly for the cause of nuclear non-proliferation but actually they are aimed at overcoming the Iranian opposition to the Western hegemony in the Middle East; maintaining the West’s stranglehold on the vast energy resources of the region and its control on the vital international trade routes passing through it; and ensuring the security of Israel, which acts as the military outpost of the United States in the Middle East.
The fact that the Western countries follow double standards or a selective approach in dealing with the issue of nuclear non-proliferation is underscored by the way most Western countries looked the other way when Israel, which is not a signatory to the NPT, embarked upon its nuclear weapon programme. Some like France and the UK directly or indirectly aided it in this endeavour while the US tacitly accepted the acquisition of nuclear weapons by Israel. Consequently, Israel is now widely believed to possess over 80 nuclear warheads.
As for Iran, it is a matter of historical record that during the reign of the Shah, a US ally, negotiations took place between the US and Iran to allow the latter to receive the US nuclear technology. President Ford, in 1975, approved a policy decision permitting the use of US material and equipment in Iran’s nuclear programme, including the provision of a full nuclear fuel cycle. This would have covered plutonium reprocessing and uranium enrichment facilities under safeguards as allowed under the NPT.
The US position changed radically after the Islamic Revolution in Iran in 1979, which interrupted the planned sale of the US reprocessing and enrichment plants to Iran. The main reason for the denial of these technologies to Iran was the growing animosity between the two countries, especially in the aftermath of the hostage crisis of 1979; the commitment of the Iranian revolutionary government to the Palestinian cause; and its resistance to the American hegemony in the Middle East.
The discovery of the clandestine Iranian uranium conversion and enrichment facilities at Isfahan and Natanz in 2002 led to the Western pressure on Iran and UN Security Council resolutions to suspend uranium enrichment. Iranian refusal to comply with these resolutions caused the UN Security Council to impose sanctions through a number of resolutions adopted between 2006 and 2010. In July 2015, Iran and P5+1, including the five permanent members of the UN Security Council, Germany, and the European Union signed the Joint Comprehensive Plan of Action, which placed Iran’s nuclear programme under several restrictions to ensure that it remains peaceful in exchange for relief from international sanctions.
The reimposition of the UNSC sanctions on Iran is likely to further weaken its economy and may destabilise it internally.
Subsequently, President Trump, in May 2018, announced America’s withdrawal from the JCPOA because of the criticism in the US about the sunset clauses in it regarding the expiry of restrictions on Iran’s nuclear programme and insufficient restrictions on its ballistic missile programme. He also signed an order reinstating US nuclear sanctions on Iran that had been waived under the Iran nuclear deal.
Iran, in response to the US withdrawal from JCPOA, gradually reduced its compliance with the agreement by exceeding the agreed limits on enriched uranium stockpile and enrichment level, and by installing advanced centrifuges used for enriching uranium. The subsequent talks between Iran, on the one hand, and the US and EU, on the other, failed to resolve the sticking issues.
Following President Trump’s re-election, additional attempts were made by the US and E3 (Britain, France and Germany) to find a mutually satisfactory settlement. These efforts failed primarily because of the American insistence that Iran should give up uranium enrichment altogether leading ultimately to Israeli and American air strikes on June 13 and June 22, respectively, causing extensive damage to Iran’s nuclear facilities. The American air strikes, in particular, severely damaged Iran’s underground uranium enrichment facilities at Natanz and Fordow.
It is against this background that the European powers triggered the “snapback” mechanism about a month ago for the reimposition of UNSC sanctions on Iran, which had been lifted earlier under the provisions of JCPOA, accusing Iran of failing to comply with its obligations under the Iran nuclear deal. A resolution tabled by China and Russia to delay the reimposition of the sanctions for six months to give diplomacy more time failed to secure the necessary support in UNSC because of the opposition by the US and European powers. Pakistan and Algeria voted for the Sino-Russian resolution.
The reimposed UN Security Council sanctions, which came into effect on September 28, provide for an arms embargo, assets freeze, travel bars and prohibitions on sensitive nuclear and missile technology transfers to Iran. Russia has termed the reimposition of sanctions on Iran “unlawful” and Iran has warned of a harsh response.
The reimposition of the UNSC sanctions on Iran is likely to further weaken its economy and may destabilise it internally. Externally, the increased Western pressure on it may push it towards closer political, security and economic cooperation with China and Russia. If better sense prevails, Iran may seek to develop closer friendly relations with neighbours like Pakistan, Turkiye and the GCC countries in the interest of a more secure regional environment. At the global level, the message in the way Iran has been treated is loud and clear: the world is fast moving towards anarchy in which power rather than international law or morality will prevail, and the UN will take a backseat in dealing with major issues of war and peace.
The writer served as Pakistan’s ambassador to Iran from 1997 to 2003. He is the author of Pakistan and a World in Disorder—A Grand Strategy for the Twenty-First Century.