A UN Security Council resolution to extend the mandate of the Panel of Experts (PoE) monitoring the implementation of UN sanctions against Iran has been defeated.

The Security Council put to a vote a U.S.-led resolution on the 17th (local time) at the UN Headquarters in New York to extend the mandate of the Iran sanctions monitoring panel by one year until September 2027, but it failed to pass due to opposition from Russia and China.

The resolution secured the necessary votes for adoption with 11 votes in favor, 2 against, and 2 abstentions, but was defeated as permanent members Russia and China exercised their vetoes.

Pakistan and Somalia abstained.

The panel of experts was tasked with monitoring the implementation of UN sanctions against Iran reinstated under the UN snapback procedure triggered last year and investigating violations.

The E3 European countries—Britain, France, and Germany—triggered the snapback procedure in September last year, arguing that Iran was not complying with the 2015 Joint Comprehensive Plan of Action (JCPOA), leading to the reinstatement of UN sanctions on Iran on September 27 last year.

Consequently, the E3 and the United States maintain that the mandate of the 1737 Iran Sanctions Committee and the independent panel of experts to support it has also been restored.

However, the Iran panel of experts has not actually been formed or operated since the sanctions were reinstated because Security Council member states failed to reach an agreement on appointing members.

Russia and China do not recognize the legal and procedural legitimacy of the panel of experts, let alone the triggering of the snapback.

Before the vote, Vasily Nebenzya, Russia's permanent representative to the UN, claimed that "the reinstatement of sanctions under the snapback is illegal, and the resolution to extend the panel of experts' mandate also lacks legal basis."

Ambassador Nebenzya criticized Western countries for escalating confrontation over the Iran issue in the Security Council, stating that the United States chose confrontation instead of a solution through dialogue.

The United States protested that the vetoes by Russia and China would weaken independent means to monitor Iran's evasion of sanctions.

Jennifer Rochetah, U.S. Deputy Permanent Representative to the UN, retorted after the vote that "this veto is part of a broader effort to block the appointment or renewal of the mandate of the panel of experts to suppress reports exposing their activities to violate Security Council obligations and support rogue regimes."

Mentioning the dissolution of the North Korea panel of experts, Deputy Ambassador Rochetah warned that "without an independent panel of experts, the Security Council loses a vital source of impartial, evidence-based reporting on sanctions violations."

Previously, the panel of experts monitoring UN sanctions on North Korea also had its operations terminated in late April 2024 due to Russia's veto of the resolution to extend its mandate.

France stated that it will examine ways to guarantee the implementation of Iran sanctions.

French Permanent Representative to the UN Jérôme Bonafont, speaking as the current Security Council president, stated that the enforcement of sanctions is an important tool to induce Iran's compliance with nuclear obligations, and that he will look into ways to ensure reliable implementation.

This could potentially lead to an alternative monitoring framework similar to the Multilateral Sanctions Monitoring Team (MSMT) joined by 11 countries including South Korea, the United States, and Japan following the termination of the North Korea sanctions panel of experts in 2024.

Meanwhile, the Permanent Mission of the Iran to the UN welcomed the move on X (formerly Twitter, stating, "Russia and China have once again taken a firm stance to uphold the UN Charter, international law, and the authority of the Security Council," and "thwarted the cynical attempts of the U.S. and its allies to exploit the Security Council for political purposes."

(Photo: Getty Images)