Iran Begs European Powers to Halt Snapback Sanctions
With the "snapback" mechanism deadline just weeks away, Iran is offering to resume nuclear inspections as a conditional "olive branch," but warns that any "hostile actions" would void the deal. The talks represent a critical last-ditch effort to de-escalate tensions, with Europe caught between U.S. pressure and the risk of a full-blown nuclear crisis.
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Iranian Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi is set to hold a video call today with his counterparts from Britain, France, and Germany, the so-called E3 group, urging them to abandon plans to reinstate UN sanctions via the snapback mechanism, just weeks before the process becomes irreversible.
The meeting follows Iran's recent agreement with the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) to resume nuclear inspections, which Tehran's diplomats have cited as a gesture of goodwill. However, Araghchi has warned that any "hostile actions," including the activation of snapback, would void the deal, escalating tensions over Iran's nuclear program.
The Snapback Mechanism and Impending Deadline
Under UN Security Council Resolution 2231, which endorsed the 2015 Joint Comprehensive Plan of Action (JCPOA), the E3 triggered the snapback process on August 29, 2025, citing Iran's alleged non-compliance with nuclear restrictions. This initiates a 30-day consultation period, ending October 18, 2025, after which all pre-JCPOA sanctions, including arms embargoes, banking restrictions, and trade barriers, would automatically snap back unless blocked by a UN Security Council vote.
Iran has until September 28, 2025, to lobby for a veto from allies Russia and China in the Security Council, but Tehran's Ministry of Foreign Affairs emphasized that the E3 meeting is a critical diplomatic window to avert the escalation altogether. Failure to do so would strip the West of its primary leverage, as future sanctions would require full Security Council approval, where Moscow and Beijing hold veto power.
Araghchi, in recent statements, described the E3's move as a "grave miscalculation" that undermines Europe's global credibility and sideline it from future diplomacy. He argued that the US withdrawal from the JCPOA in 2018 under President Donald Trump, followed by reimposed sanctions, absolved Iran of full compliance, while Europe failed to deliver promised economic relief.
The IAEA Agreement: A Conditional Olive Branch
The E3 had conditioned any snapback extension on Iran restoring IAEA access, suspended since June 2025 after US and Israeli strikes on nuclear facilities like Natanz and Fordow. On September 9, 2025, Araghchi and IAEA Director General Rafael Grossi signed a technical agreement in Cairo, Egypt, outlining modalities for resuming inspections under Iran's NPT safeguards.
The deal, valid until October 18, 2025, addresses Iran's security concerns post-attacks and ensures IAEA verification of peaceful nuclear activities, but Araghchi stressed it hinges on no further Western aggression. Iran's Supreme National Security Council endorsed the pact, aligning it with parliamentary laws, but warned that snapback activation would halt implementation.
As of now, IAEA access remains limited to the Bushehr Nuclear Power Plant, with full resumption pending further technical talks in Vienna. IAEA reports from September 3, 2025, highlight lost "continuity of knowledge" on Iran's uranium stockpiles, including 440.9 kg enriched to 60%, enough for up to 10 weapons if further processed, due to the suspension.
Iran's Mixed Signals: Diplomacy and Threats
Foreign Ministry spokesperson Esmaeil Baghaei echoed Araghchi's optimism for the E3 call, stating it is a "natural expectation" that Iran's positive steps be reciprocated. "If European parties start making trouble, it means they don't accept the IAEA agreement," Baghaei said, adding that escalation benefits no one and that Iran hopes for future talks to de-escalate.
Yet, Tehran has coupled pleas with warnings. Araghchi previously called snapback "null and void" in a joint letter with Russia and China to UN Secretary-General António Guterres, rejecting the E3's legal basis. Iran maintains its remedial measures, such as higher enrichment levels, were lawful responses to US violations.
The E3, in a September 10 statement to the IAEA Board, commended the agency for pushing safeguards restoration but criticized Iran for three months of non-cooperation, including suspending required reports. They reiterated openness to diplomacy but insisted on full IAEA access as a precondition.
The talks occur against stalled US-Iran negotiations, restarted in April 2025 in Oman but hampered by mutual distrust and Iran's uranium stockpile. US Secretary of State Marco Rubio has signaled readiness for direct engagement, but threats of further military action loom if Iran advances toward weaponization.
A prior E3 call with Araghchi on September 12 ended without progress, described as confrontational, with no new Iranian proposals on nuclear concerns. Araghchi expressed openness to a snapback extension but deferred it to the UN Security Council.
As the October deadline approaches, the video conference represents Iran's last major bid to "beg" for sanctions relief, per some analysts, while threatening JCPOA withdrawal if rebuffed. The outcome could reshape global non-proliferation efforts, with Europe caught between US pressure and the risk of alienating key partners like Russia and China.