Russia, China reject US plan to extend UN arms embargo on Iran

Russia and China have slammed the United States’ plans to extend a UN arms embargo on Iran along with a probable push to trigger a return of all sanctions on Tehran at the UN Security Council.

The “US has no right to extend an arms embargo on Iran, let alone to trigger snapback,” China’s UN mission wrote in a tweet on Thursday.

“Maintaining the Joint Comprehensive Plan of Action is the only right way moving forward,” it added.

Russian Deputy Foreign Minister Sergei Ryabkov also vehemently rejected the plan as a “cynical” measure plunging the UN Security Council into crisis.

“The conclusion is that the next crisis in the UN Security Council and the UN as a whole is imminent, taking into account this US stubbornness,” he said.

“Washington will not have an easy road here in any case,” he added.

Over the last month, Washington has stepped up calls for the extension of a UN arms embargo on Iran that will expire in October under UN Security Council resolution 2231, which endorsed the landmark Iran nuclear deal in 2015.

The United States threatens to trigger a return of all United Nations sanctions on Iran if the UN Security Council does not extend an arms embargo on Tehran that is due to expire in October.

Tehran, however, has firmly rejected Washington’s plans as the US is no longer a party to the nuclear deal ever since it withdrew from the multilateral agreement in 2018.

China and Russia, which are both signatories to the JCPOA, echoed Tehran’s position in their statements on Thursday.