SAEDNEWS: EU foreign policy chief Kaja Kallas said she remains determined to facilitate diplomacy with Iran after the European Troika triggered the snapback mechanism, transferring the issue to the UN Security Council.
According to Saed News, Kaja Kallas, the EU’s foreign policy chief and coordinator of the JCPOA Joint Commission, announced Thursday evening that the foreign ministers of France, Germany, and the United Kingdom had sent a letter to the UN Security Council accusing Iran of “seriously failing to implement its JCPOA commitments” and formally activated the so-called “snapback” mechanism.
The EU website published a statement from Kallas, noting that the European Troika claimed in their letter that Iran had not fulfilled its obligations under the JCPOA, and therefore, under paragraph 11 of UN Security Council Resolution 2231, the snapback mechanism had been triggered.
The statement recalled that the three countries had already recorded their concerns regarding Iran’s non-compliance and had referred the matter to the JCPOA Joint Commission under the dispute resolution mechanism. According to Kallas, since then, the Joint Commission has held extensive discussions and negotiations with other JCPOA participants, including the United States.
The snapback mechanism, embedded in Resolution 2231, allows members of the nuclear deal to restore international sanctions if they claim one party has failed to comply. However, Iranian officials emphasize that this mechanism is only valid if all parties honor their commitments. They argue that the European states, by failing to uphold their economic obligations and remaining silent in the face of U.S. actions, have lost the legal and moral legitimacy to use it. Tehran has vowed to respond to Europe’s move to restore sanctions.
The European ministers also pointed to their meetings with Iran over the past year, claiming that they had recently offered to support extending Resolution 2231 if Iran addressed their urgent concerns. Nevertheless, they again insisted that they seek a diplomatic solution to the nuclear issue.
Kallas concluded her statement by stressing that the matter is now in the hands of the UN Security Council, adding that she remains determined, as JCPOA coordinator, to facilitate diplomacy and reach a negotiated solution. She called on all relevant parties to act swiftly.
On Friday, ahead of an EU meeting in Copenhagen, Kallas further stated: “We are entering a new 30-day phase, which must truly be used to find diplomatic solutions.”
