Russia and China have vetoed a United States-backed resolution at the United Nations Security Council that would have authorised UN experts to keep monitoring sanctions on Iran. The resolution, shut down on Thursday, would have extended the mandate for the independent monitoring of sanctions that were reimposed last year after western powers accused Iran of violating the 2015 nuclear pact. Tehran denies it is seeking nuclear weapons or violating the agreement.
The Security Council in 2025 reinstated an independent panel of experts to monitor and report on sanctions violations by Iran, including recommending further action. But the experts were never appointed due to disagreements among member states, leading to a lack of consensus among the 15-member Security Council. On Thursday, 11 members voted to extend the Security Council’s mandate for monitoring sanctions, while Pakistan and Somalia abstained.
Iran’s mission to the UN thanked Russia and China for opposing what it called a “politically motivated” US draft resolution. UN sanctions were officially reimposed against Iran in September 2025 when France, Germany and the United Kingdom triggered the “snapback” mechanism, reinstating six earlier Security Council resolutions sanctioning Iran’s nuclear and military programmes. Earlier this week, the US barred Iran’s nuclear chief, Mohammad Eslami, from attending the UN’s International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) annual conference in Vienna after the Security Council rejected a waiver to lift his travel ban, which are part of the so-called “snapback” sanctions targeting Iranian officials who are linked to the country’s nuclear and ballistic missile programmes.
Eslami and his delegation were forced to cancel their trip to the five-day conference after Austria revoked his visa, Iranian state media said.
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