UNSC dismisses US’s demand
United Nations has blocked a controversial bid by the US to reimpose international sanctions on Iran, with the Security Council saying it could not proceed with the disputed move.
The presidency of the Council, assumed in August by Indonesia, is "not in a position to take further action" on Washington's request, said Indonesian ambassador Dian Triansyah Djani.
In a video conference on the Middle East, he cited the lack of consensus in the UN's highest body on the US strategy as the main reason.
The Trump administration accuses Tehran of failing to comply with the terms of the historic 2015 Iran nuclear deal, and is demanding the Security Council reimpose sanctions on the Islamic Republic.
Washington insists on its legal right to trigger the disputed procedure, called "snapback" -- despite pulling out of the deal two years ago.
The move threatens to torpedo the Iran accord and plunge the Council into crisis, while widening the gulf between the US and almost every other member on Iran policy.
Thirteen of the 15 Council members had written to the Indonesian presidency to reject its validity.
One diplomat,on condition of annonymity, said with the sound rejection of the US bid by almost the entire Council, "normally the matter is closed."
Washington has previously accused Council members of "siding with the ayatollahs."
The move, never before used, comes after the US suffered a humiliating defeat at the Security Council earlier this month when it failed to muster support for a resolution to extend a conventional arms embargo on Iran.
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