“My actions today send a clear message to the Iranian regime,” Donald Trump said.
Washington:
President Donald Trump said on Monday he was imposing sanctions on the Iranians for violating a UN arms embargo and demanded its implementation by US allies, who categorically deny that he has such authority.
Trump’s provocative move came the same day the UN celebrated its 75th anniversary with a virtual summit full of calls for greater international cooperation.
The Trump administration said it was imposing sanctions on 27 people and entities under a UN resolution, including Iran’s Defense Ministry, its Atomic Energy Organization and Venezuelan left-wing leader Nicolas Maduro, whom Washington is trying to overthrow.
“The United States has now reinstated UN sanctions against Iran,” Trump said in a statement.
“My actions today send a clear message to the Iranian regime and to those in the international community who refuse to stand up to Iran.”
The Trump administration argues that it is enforcing a UN arms embargo that Iran has violated, including through an attack on Saudi oil facilities.
The embargo on conventional arms supplies to Iran is set to expire next month after the United States fails to win support for a new UN resolution.
The Trump administration says it is “reinstating” virtually all UN sanctions against Iran under a 2015 nuclear deal with Tehran brokered by former President Barack Obama.
Trump withdrew from the deal with fanfare in 2018, and Secretary of State Mike Pompeo again called it an “abject failure” on Monday.
But Pompeo argues that the United States is still a “participant” in the deal – with the right to impose sanctions for the violations – as listed in the resolution that blessed Obama’s diplomatic effort. .
– Iran says there is no renegotiation –
The legal argument has been rejected by almost the entire UN Security Council, with the European allies of the United States declaring that the priority is to salvage a peaceful solution to Iran’s nuclear program.
“We have made it clear that each member state of the United Nations has the responsibility to apply the sanctions,” Pompeo told reporters questioned about the European opposition.
“It certainly includes the UK, France and Germany.”
A press conference to announce the move was scheduled just as Iranian Foreign Minister Mohammad Javad Zarif was speaking to a major US think tank, in an appearance denounced by the Trump administration.
Zarif told the Council on External Relations that the latest move would not have “significant impact” on his country.
“The United States exerted all the pressure it could on Iran, it did it. It had hoped that these sanctions would bring our people to their knees. It is not,” Zarif said.
The United States once slapped sweeping unilateral sanctions on Iran when Trump withdrew from the nuclear deal, at a time when UN inspectors said Tehran was in compliance with the deal that was supposed to offer him economic relief.
The latest move has led some observers to conclude that Trump’s real goal is to kill the nuclear deal for good before the November 3 election, in which his Democratic rival Joe Biden was a staunch supporter of the nuclear deal.
Zarif said Iran was unwilling to renegotiate the original deal even if Biden wins.
“The United States must first prove that it is worthy of the confidence required to re-enter the agreement before setting the conditions,” Zarif said.
– Snub at the UN –
The Trump administration has sought to reduce Iran’s regional weight and strengthen rivals Saudi Arabia and Israel.
He scored a significant victory earlier this month when the United Arab Emirates and Bahrain recognized Israel.
But the United States has been less successful in its goal of ousting Maduro, who enjoys the support of the Venezuelan military, China and Russia.
Pompeo was joined by cabinet colleagues and U.S. Ambassador to the United Nations Kelly Craft, who traveled to Washington rather than staying in New York for the global body’s 75th anniversary summit.
As world leaders sent recorded messages, the United States was represented by its acting deputy envoy, though Trump is expected to speak virtually at the Annual General Meeting on Tuesday.
UN Secretary-General Antonio Guterres opened the summit with a call to seek multilateral solutions.
“No one wants a world government – but we have to work together to improve global governance,” Guterres said.
(Except for the title, this story was not edited by GalacticGaming staff and is posted from a syndicated feed.)
