Iran promises ‘appropriate and decisive’ response as US calls for arms embargo to be prolonged

Tehran’s Foreign Ministry spokesman accused Washington of acting “illegally” in their efforts to influence the UN Security Council, adding Iran would not be “seeking to exit the 2015 nuclear deal” the US pulled out of in 2018.

Foreign Ministry spokesman Abbas Mousavi said Iran’s response would be “proportionate” after the US said last week it was “hopeful” the UN Security Council would extend the arms embargo on Iran before it expires in October.

The Trump administration has taken a harder line against the Islamic Republic after withdrawing from the deal, which relaxed economic sanctions in exchange for Tehran halting its nuclear program in 2018.

“The United States is not a member of the nuclear deal anymore,” Mousavi said. “Iran’s reaction to America’s illegal measures will be firm.”

Washington has threatened to bring back all UN sanctions on Iran as leverage to get backing from the 15-member Security Council on extending the UN arms embargo on Tehran.

The embargo bans the selling of conventional weapons to the Islamic Republic and is currently set to begin being progressively lifted in October as part of the deal on Iran’s nuclear program agreed to by the Obama administration. The nuclear deal saw Iran agreeing to halt its uranium enrichment capabilities in return for a lifting of sanctions by the US and six other entities, including the UK, Russia, and the EU.

President Donald Trump unilaterally withdrew from the agreement in 2018, claiming it was bad for the US, then imposed further sanctions following a US airstrike that killed Revolutionary Guard General Qasem Soleimani in January.

This prompted Iran to begin stockpiling uranium again, reportedly amassing 1,021kg by March, well above the 203kg it had been restricted to under the terms of the agreement, though Tehran maintains that this is not for use in weapons.

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