US' push for renewal of UN arms ban illegal: Iran

Tehran: Senior Iranian officials have said that the US' bid to renew a UN arms embargo against Tehran lacked a "legal" basis.

In a phone call with his French counterpart Emmanuel Macron on Wednesday, Iranian President Hassan Rouhani said that the US has "no right" to use mechanisms of the landmark 2015 nuclear deal, also known as the Joint Comprehensive Plan of Action (JCPOA), for its objectives, reports Xinhua news agency.

Rouhani was referring to the withdrawal of Washington from the deal in May 2018.Iran has insisted that the US was no longer a party to the accord and cannot use its mechanisms for any dispute. However, the US administration has recently urged the UN Security Council for the renewal of the UN arms embargo against Iran which is set to expire on October.

Rouhani told Macron that the remaining parties to the deal should oppose the US drive for the extension of UN ban. He also said on Wednesday that the US has put forward the anti-Iran resolution at the UN Security Council in order to deal a blow to the JCPOA and the Resolution 2231.

"Under Resolution 2231 and the Iran nuclear deal, the arms embargo on Iran will be lifted in October. All resolutions banning weapons trade for Iran will, in practice, be null and void," he said. Rouhani stressed that after the termination of the UN ban on Iran in October, the Islamic Republic will be able to sell and buy weapons.

"The US will be defeated and face isolation" in its attempt to extend the arms ban, Rouhani said at a cabinet meeting, according to state TV. Also, any attempt to endorse the US-initiated proposal would be a clear violation of the UN Security Council Resolution 2231 and the Iranian 2015 multilateral nuclear deal, he said, adding that the parties behind the ploy should accept the consequences.

Rouhani also dismissed the claims by the US President Donald Trump that he would be looking for peace with Iran immediately after re-election. Meanwhile, Iranian Foreign Minister Mohammad Javad Zarif said on Wednesday that the US cannot use a "snapback" mechanism to renew a UN arms embargo against Iran.

"Snapback" refers to the reimposition of all UN sanctions against Iran. "The US draft resolution pertaining to the UN arms embargo is illegal, and the Americans will not receive enough votes for their proposal on Iran in the UN Security Council's upcoming meeting," Zarif was quoted as saying.

This will result in further isolation of the US administration, he added.