Iran warns Europe over snapback sanctions, declares defense capabilities off limits
Iran Press TV
Monday, 28 July 2025 10:34 AM
Iran's Foreign Ministry spokesman Esmaeil Baghaei has rejected attempts by the UK, France, and Germany to reinstate United Nations sanctions on Tehran, saying the European countries have no legal authority to do so.
"Such a right does not exist, and we oppose the very essence of this issue. We have communicated our position to them," Baghaei told a weekly press conference in Tehran on Monday.
The European trio, party to the 2015 nuclear deal with Iran, has sought to activate the deal's "snapback" mechanism to restore sanctions. However, Baghaei asserted that their backing of Israel and the United States in last month's unprovoked war on Iran had voided their rights under the agreement.
He said the trio actually "undermined" the credibility of UN Security Council Resolution 2231 that has endorsed the nuclear deal, by supporting the aggression.
"The question now is whether they can [now even] call themselves a party" to the deal, the official stated.
Baghaei warned that Iran would respond appropriately if the "snapback" was used against it. Iran's parliament has also threatened to withdraw from the Nuclear Non-Proliferation Treaty (NPT) if sanctions are reimposed.
"Our membership cannot continue while we are deprived of our legitimate rights, including uranium enrichment," Baghaei said.
On cooperation with the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA), he noted that despite tensions, Tehran remains a party to safeguard agreements and plans to devise a new protocol.
"Within the next two weeks, one of the agency's officials will visit Iran," he said.
Baghaei dismissed European calls to discuss Iran's missile program and regional influence as unrelated to the nuclear talks, which focus on lifting sanctions. "There will be absolutely no discussion on our defense capabilities," he said.
"Our talks with European sides are clear: they focus on lifting sanctions and the nuclear issue," he said, adding, "Raising unrelated topics sporadically is a sign of confusion among the European parties."
Baghaei asserted that Iran's successful defense in the face of the Israeli-American war clearly proved the importance of the Islamic Republic's defensive firepower.
"It is clear to all that what can help us defend ourselves are the capabilities developed by our own scientists, and there will be absolutely no discussion on this matter."
He also said Iran has no plans to resume talks with Washington, stressing decisions will be made based on national interests.
Regarding the ongoing Israeli war on Gaza, Baghaei called it "the most significant international and regional concern," condemning the occupying regime's military aggression and use of "starvation and thirst as weapons of war."
He said Iran is working with regional partners and the Organization of Islamic Cooperation to hold an emergency meeting to address the ongoing genocide.
He cited the regime's incessant bombardments of Gaza "to advance the plan to annihilate the Palestinian nation."
The spokesperson also commented on France's plans to recognize Palestine as a state, saying they contradicted the European country's support for the Israeli regime's bloodletting in Gaza.
"Sixty-thousand innocent people have been killed, and Gaza has become uninhabitable. You destroy all the necessary conditions for establishing a state while simultaneously claiming to recognize the State of Palestine," he said, directing his criticism at the Western countries.
Baghaei also addressed the recent US withdrawal from UNESCO, the United Nations cultural agency, which Washington cited as being biased against it, saying the move only serves to embolden Tel Aviv in its actions.
Baghaei did not rule out the Israeli regime's role in a recent terrorist attack in the southeastern Iranian city of Zahedan that claimed the lives of six people.
The attack, he said, took place "in the context of the regime's ongoing crimes against Iran, and the regime spares no means to create insecurity."
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