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UN PhotoNon-Proliferation - Security Council, 9367th Meeting
Negotiations Stall While Iran’s Uranium Stockpiles Increase, Security Council Told, as Additional Allegations Frustrate Return to Joint Nuclear Plan.
Diplomacy, Implementation of Plan Only Viable Option, Speakers Stress.
Stalled efforts to restore implementation of the Joint Comprehensive Plan of Action have been complicated further by allegations that Iran transferred unmanned aerial vehicles to the Russian Federation for use in Ukraine, speakers told the Security Council today, with members — divided from the start — voting on whether to allow Ukraine to participate in the debate in the first place.
At the outset of the meeting, the representative of the Russian Federation requested a procedural vote regarding Ukraine’s participation in the meeting. By a vote of 12 in favour to 2 against (China, Russian Federation), with 1 abstention (Mozambique), the Council adopted the proposal to invite Ukraine to participate in the meeting under Rule 37.
Rosemary A. DiCarlo, Under-Secretary-General for Political and Peacebuilding Affairs, recalled her last briefing on the matter, when all participants to the Plan and the United States reaffirmed that returning to the Plan’s full implementation was the only viable option. Six months later, negotiations have stalled, and the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) estimates that Iran has an enriched-uranium stockpile of more than 20 times the allowable amount under the Plan.
In the ensuing debate, many speakers expressed concern over Iran’s alleged transfer of unmanned aerial vehicles to the Russian Federation in violation of resolution 2231 (2015). Council members also echoed briefers’ calls for diplomacy, with several recalling the United States’ withdrawal from the Plan of Action in 2018. While some members urged focus on the nuclear issue, others pointed out that Iran’s advancements in that area are particularly alarming, as well.
