NEW YORK: The US has proposed a UN Security Council resolution condemning a devastating 2019 attack on Saudi oil facilities it blames on Iran and proposing an extension of an arms embargo against the Islamic republic, sources said.
The embargo, put in place as part of a nuclear accord signed with Tehran in 2015, is set to expire in October, but Washington has been working to extend the ban as tensions with its arch-rival remain high.
On Friday, France, the UK and Germany — all signatories to the deal — issued a joint statement arguing against lifting the ban as scheduled, saying it could have “major implications for regional security and stability.”
The US resolution “condemns the attacks of September 2019 against Saudi Arabia carried out by Iran”. Iran has denied the allegation.
It also calls for the body to “prohibit the supply, sale or transfer, direct or indirect… of weapons and related materials,” excluding those that are approved with 30 days’ notice.
No date has been scheduled for a vote on the resolution and it is unlikely to pass, as veto-wielding China and Russia have already spoken out against extending the embargo.
France, the UK and Germany have already rejected any “unilateral attempt” to re-impose UN sanctions on Iran.
Iran agreed with major world powers in 2015 to freeze its nuclear program in return for the lifting of punishing international sanctions.
But in 2018, US President Donald Trump pulled the United States out of the agreement and reimposed sanctions, prompting Iran to roll back its own commitments.
