News- Middle East: Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi says the re-imposition of UN sanctions against Iran is “groundless and illegitimate.”

The Iranian minister called on the member states of the Non-Aligned Movement (NAM) to reject such “invalid” maneuvers by the United States and the three European countries known as the E3 (Britain, France, and Germany.)

Araghchi made the remarks at the 19th Midterm Ministerial Meeting of the Coordinating Bureau of the Non-Aligned Movement in Uganda’s capital, Kampala, on Wednesday.

“The United States and the European permanent members of the Security Council tried to misuse the UN Security Council to reinstate terminated UN Security Council resolutions against the Islamic Republic of Iran,” Araghchi said.

The move, he added, constitutes a “clear breach” of the provisions laid out in Resolution 2231, which endorsed the 2015 nuclear agreement between Tehran and six world powers, known as the Joint Comprehensive Plan of Action (JCPOA).  

Iran’s top diplomat said, while the resolution is due to expire on October 18, “the revival of these terminated measures is completely groundless and illegitimate, amounting to nothing more than a means of political extortion."

“Given these circumstances, we urge fellow NAM members to stay true to the movement’s bedrock principles and refuse to go along with such invalid and illegal maneuvers, which are purely aimed at gaining political leverage by flouting international law and norms.”

Araghchi said adopting such a stand “not only renews our joint dedication to NAM’s core values but also signals loud and clear to the world that independent nations, united in solidarity and purposeful resolve, will not bow to bullying or coercive pressures.”

Britain, France, and Germany triggered the so-called snapback mechanism on August 28, setting in motion a 30‑day process to restore all UN sanctions on Iran.

Despite last-minute efforts by Russia and China to preserve diplomacy, the Security Council failed to reach a consensus on September 26.

Two days later, the E3 and the United States declared the sanctions reinstated and urged UN member states to enforce them.

Tehran has categorically rejected the claim, saying it was the United States and its European allies who undermined the 2015 nuclear deal by failing to honor their commitments.

Iranian officials maintain that no UN member state is obliged to comply with the unilateral and unlawful measure.

Iran’s position is anchored in UN Security Council Resolution 2231, which endorsed the JCPOA and formally lifted earlier sanctions on Tehran’s nuclear program.

Iranian officials say the resolution established a clear, time-bound framework under which all nuclear-related restrictions are set to expire permanently on October 18, 2025.

‘Israel must be held accountable’

Elsewhere in his remarks, Iran’s foreign minister referred to the suffering of the Palestinian people, particularly after Israel’s campaign of genocide in Gaza.

As a fragile ceasefire is currently in place in Gaza, he said Tehran “supports any measure to stop the genocide, remove occupying soldiers from the strip, provide humanitarian access to the Gazans and rebuild Gaza.”

“Any solution for the issue of Palestine would be doomed to failure without recognizing the right of the Palestinian people to self-determination,” Araghchi stated.

“The Israeli criminals must be held accountable, prosecuted, and punished.”

Araghchi also said Palestine “has every right to continue its legitimate and lawful struggle” for self-determination and to free itself from the Israeli occupation.

Pointing to Israel’s unprovoked aggression against Iran in June, the minister said the assault “proves that it [the Israeli regime] knows no ethical or legal boundaries.”

“It is vital to leverage every national and international legal mechanism at our disposal to bring war criminals and genocide perpetrators to justice, averting future recurrences and ensuring that no one escapes accountability.”

Source: Press TV