London Daily

Focus on the big picture.
Wednesday, Oct 01, 2025

UK, France and Germany agree to reject US demand for Iran snapback sanctions

UK, France and Germany agree to reject US demand for Iran snapback sanctions

European ‘E3’ ministers reach consensus during Kent meeting hosted by UK foreign secretary Dominic Raab

Foreign ministers from the UK, France and Germany have agreed to hold out against US demands to snapback all UN sanctions on Iran, despite intensified pressure from the US specifically on the UK government to fall into line.

The US was left isolated at the UN security council last month when it said it wished to reimpose snapback sanctions, with the European nations – known collectively as the E3 – arguing that the US was no longer a participant in the deal and so unable to act unilaterally.

The US, which left the deal in 2018, described the E3 position as crackers and pandering to terrorists. A further showdown on the issue at the UN is expected this month.

The UK foreign secretary Dominic Raab hosted a meeting in Chevening in Kent with his German and French counterparts Heiko Maas and Jean-Yves Le Drian.

Germany and France, co-operating with the UK over Iran despite the Brexit backdrop, acknowledge there are special UK sensitivities about defying its closest partner the US on such a critical security issue. The European diplomats recognise that the UK wants a free trade deal with the US, and defying the US on snapback may infuriate Donald Trump.


German foreign minister Heiko Maas, Britain’s foreign secretary Dominic Raab and French foreign minister Jean-Yves le Drian pose for a photograph at Chevening House, Sevenoaks.


The US also wants the E3 to vote at the UN security council against the automatic lifting of the ban on the export of conventional weapons to Iran, but the E3 feel frustrated the US has not yet shown a willingness to negotiate a compromise on the ban’s extent.

A maximalist US stance on the ban will only ensure no ban extension is passed since Russia and Germany will use their veto at the security council, the E3 believes. The ban is supposed to lift automatically in October in line with the five year timetable set out by the nuclear deal in 2015.
Advertisement

Earlier this week Raab told MPs that the legal advice was reasonably clear that the US had excluded itself from imposing snapback sanctions by leaving the deal in 2018. In a tweet after the Chevening meeting Raab said “we are committed to holding Iran to account”.

The German foreign office placed a different emphasis saying they “reject the US snapback attempt and remain committed to preserving the nuclear agreement, but Iran urgently needs to return to full compliance”.

The Iranian foreign ministry has not officially confirmed reports that the country’s foreign minister Javad Zarif, under sanctions from the US, will tour Europe next week ahead of the further UN showdown.

Iran’s uranium stockpile is currently ten times over the limit set in the deal, a leaked UN watchdog report shows, but Iran says it is entitled to breach its obligations due to the failure of the EU to defy the US over improving trade with Iran.

Zarif stresses Iran is fully in compliance with the system of inspections of its nuclear sites. Iran resolved differences with the UN weapons watchdog the International Atomic Energy Agency over its inspectors accessing two sites last month.

Newsletter

Related Articles

0:00
0:00
Close
Trump Administration Launches “TrumpRx” Plan to Enable Direct Drug Sales at Deep Discounts
Trump Announces Intention to Impose 100 Percent Tariff on Foreign-Made Films
Altman Says GPT-5 Already Outpaces Him, Warns AI Could Automate 40% of Work
Singapore and Hong Kong Vie to Dominate Asia’s Rising Gold Trade
Trump Organization Teams with Saudi Developer on $1 Billion Trump Plaza in Jeddah
Manhattan Sees Surge in Office-to-Housing Conversions, Highest Since 2008
Switzerland and U.S. Issue Joint Assurance Against Currency Manipulation
Electronic Arts to Be Taken Private in Historic $55 Billion Buyout
Thomas Jacob Sanford Named as Suspect in Deadly Michigan Church Shooting and Arson
Russian Research Vessel 'Yantar' Tracked Mapping Europe’s Subsea Cables, Raising Security Alarms
New York Man Arrested After On-Air Confession to 2017 Parents’ Murders
U.S. Defense Chief Orders Sudden Summit of Hundreds of Generals and Admirals
Global Cruise Industry Posts Dramatic Comeback with 34.6 Million Passengers in 2024
Trump Claims FBI Planted 274 Agents at Capitol Riot, Citing Unverified Reports
India: Internet Suspended in Bareilly Amid Communal Clashes Between Muslims and Hindus
Supreme Court Extends Freeze on Nearly $5 Billion in U.S. Foreign Aid at Trump’s Request
Archaeologists Recover Statues and Temples from 2,000-Year-Old Sunken City off Alexandria
China Deploys 2,000 Workers to Spain to Build Major EV Battery Factory, Raising European Dependence
Speed Takes Over: How Drive-Through Coffee Chains Are Rewriting U.S. Coffee Culture
U.S. Demands Brussels Scrutinize Digital Rules to Prevent Bias Against American Tech
Ringo Starr Champions Enduring Beatles Legacy While Debuting Las Vegas Art Show
Private Equity’s Fundraising Surge Triggers Concern of European Market Shake-Out
Colombian President Petro Vows to Mobilize Volunteers for Gaza and Joins List of Fighters
FBI Removes Agents Who Kneeled at 2020 Protest, Citing Breach of Professional Conduct
Trump Alleges ‘Triple Sabotage’ at United Nations After Escalator and Teleprompter Failures
Shock in France: 5 Years in Prison for Former President Nicolas Sarkozy
Tokyo’s Jimbōchō Named World’s Coolest Neighbourhood for 2025
European Officials Fear Trump May Shift Blame for Ukraine War onto EU
BNP Paribas Abandons Ban on 'Controversial Weapons' Financing Amid Europe’s Defence Push
Typhoon Ragasa Leaves Trail of Destruction Across East Asia Before Making Landfall in China
The Personality Rights Challenge in India’s AI Era
Big Banks Rebuild in Hong Kong as Deal Volume Surges
Italy Considers Freezing Retirement Age at 67 to Avert Scheduled Hike
Italian City to Impose Tax on Visiting Dogs Starting in 2026
Arnault Denounces Proposed Wealth Tax as Threat to French Economy
Study Finds No Safe Level of Alcohol for Dementia Risk
Denmark Investigates Drone Incursion, Does Not Rule Out Russian Involvement
Lilly CEO Warns UK Is ‘Worst Country in Europe’ for Drug Prices, Pulls Back Investment
Nigel Farage Emerges as Central Force in British Politics with Reform UK Surge
Disney Reinstates ‘Jimmy Kimmel Live!’ after Six-Day Suspension over Charlie Kirk Comments
U.S. Prosecutors Move to Break Up Google’s Advertising Monopoly
Nvidia Pledges Up to $100 Billion Investment in OpenAI to Power Massive AI Data Center Build-Out
U.S. Signals ‘Large and Forceful’ Support for Argentina Amid Market Turmoil
Nvidia and Abu Dhabi’s TII Launch First AI-&-Robotics Lab in the Middle East
Vietnam Faces Up to $25 Billion Export Loss as U.S. Tariffs Bite
Europe Signals Stronger Support for Taiwan at Major Taipei Defence Show
Indonesia Court Upholds Military Law Amid Concerns Over Expanded Civilian Role
Larry Ellison, Michael Dell and Rupert Murdoch Join Trump-Backed Bid to Take Over TikTok
Trump and Musk Reunite Publicly for First Time Since Fallout at Kirk Memorial
Vietnam Closes 86 Million Untouched Bank Accounts Over Biometric ID Rules
×