France, Germany and the United Kingdom’s decision on Thursday to return sanctions on the Iranian regime drew praise from U.S. and Israeli leaders and from Jewish organizations.
The trio, which is referred to as the E3, had said in August that it would reimpose sanctions if the Islamic Republic didn’t reach a nuclear deal by the end of the month.
Marco Rubio, the U.S. secretary of state, stated that Washington welcomed the decision.
The three countries “have laid out a clear case of Iran’s continuing ‘significant non-performance’ of its nuclear commitments, establishing a strong basis for initiating snapback,” stated Rubio, who is also the U.S. national security advisor. “Moreover, the E3 could have initiated snapback at any point since 2019 but chose instead to first pursue intensive outreach and engagement, to provide Iran with a diplomatic off-ramp from its strategy of nuclear escalation.”
Rubio said that Washington will work with allies on the sanctions but is available “for direct engagement with Iran, in furtherance of a peaceful, enduring resolution to the Iran nuclear issue.”
Danny Danon, the Israeli ambassador to the United Nations, stated that “Iran continues to ignore the international community and violate its commitments time and time again.”
“Israel has already demonstrated its concerns about the malicious intentions of the ayatollahs’ regime,” he said. “Now the countries of the world are also joining the fight against the axis of evil. This is an important step on the way to stopping the Iranian nuclear program and increasing pressure on the regime in Tehran.”
The American Jewish Committee said the sanctions are “an important step toward holding the Iranian regime accountable for its repeated violations of its nuclear obligations and its continued dangerous actions,” and AIPAC said that they are “a critical step to increase pressure on the Iranian regime by restoring international restrictions and sanctions targeting the country’s nuclear and missile programs.”
