Russia’s Ambassador to the United Nations Vasily Nebenzya has said that the United States cannot demand the extension of arms embargo against Tehran since it is no more a party to the 2015 nuclear deal, known as the JCPOA.

“I do not see any reasons why arms embargo should be imposed on Iran,” TASS quoted him as saying on Wednesday in a press conference.

“It expires on 18 October. It was temporary. Let’s call a spade a spade: it was not in fact even an embargo. It is the provision where Iran is allowed to export/import armaments on the consent of the Security Council. Of course, you may call it a de-facto embargo, because we know what would happen if Iran asked for such a waiver, but technically it was not an embargo. For us it’s clear, it expires on 18 October. We proceed from that fact,” he said.

The high-ranking diplomat noted that exactly two years ago, the U.S. “proudly announced” that it withdrew from the JCPOA and closed the door behind.

“Now they knock on that door and say ‘just wait for a second, we forgot to do one little thing on the JCPOA. Let us back, we will do it and leave again’. This is ridiculous,” Nebenzya said.

He added, “You know, in order to be able to use the instruments provided by JCPOA you first have to be a participant of the JCPOA. The U.S. has not been an effective participant of the JCPOA for two years now.”

U.S. Secretary of State Mike Pompeo is preparing an argument that the U.S. remains a participant in the Iran nuclear accord that President Trump has renounced, part of an intricate strategy to pressure the United Nations Security Council to extend an arms embargo on Tehran or see far more stringent sanctions reimposed on the country.

Russian military expert Igor Korotchenko has said that the United States is no longer a party to the 2015 nuclear deal, known as the JCPOA, and has no “moral” and “political” right to use the deal to reach its political objectives.

In an interview with IRNA published on Saturday, Korotchenko said that the U.S. has no authority in the UN 2231 resolution, which endorsed the nuclear deal.

Extension of an arms embargo on Iran by the U.S. has no legal credibility, the military expert added.

Foreign Minister Mohammad Javad Zarif said on May 5 that Pompeo pretends UNSCR 2231 is independent of the JCPOA, noting that the JCPOA is “PART of 2231”.

In a tweet, Zarif advised Pompeo to read the 2231 resolution.

“JCPOA is PART of 2231. That’s why it's 104 pages—& why he’s not read it. 
2231 for Dummies:
-It would NOT EXIST w/o JCPOA
-The U.S. violated it & prevented others from complying
-U.S. has NO standing,” he added in his tweet.

Esmaeil Baghaei Hamaneh, Iran’s ambassador and permanent representative to the UN office in Geneva, has said that the United States must bear responsibility for abusing the UN Security Council and manipulation of its decisions.

“U.S. must be held to account and bear responsibility, not to be APPEASEMBOLDENED, for its bullying behavior and recurring pattern of wrongful (ab)use of the #UNSC & manipulation of its decisions,” Hamaneh tweeted on May 3.

In another tweet, he said, “US’ invocation of #UNSCR2231 is a travesty, flouting a fundamental principle governing intl relations;’...a party which disowns or doesn't fulfill its own obligations cannot be recognized as retaining the rights which it claims to derive from the relationship’ (#ICJ, 1971).”

NA/PA