Iran urges UN chief to hold US to account over sanctions

"The United Nations and its member states, in accordance with the Charter of the United Nations and the international law, should resist against these wrongful acts and hold the United States accountable for such acts," Khoshroo said in a letter to UN Secretary General Antonio Guterres on Monday.

"The irresponsible conduct of the United States necessitates a collective response by the international community in order to uphold the rule of law, to prevent undermining diplomacy and to protect multilateralism," he added.

The administration of US President Donald Trump announced on Monday the reimposition of the “toughest” sanctions ever against Iran lifted under the 2015 nuclear deal, officially known as the Joint Comprehensive Plan of Action (JCPOA), after pulling out of the agreement reached between Iran and the P5+1 group of countries -- the United States, Britain, France, Germany, China and Russia.

US Secretary of State Mike Pompeo and Treasury Secretary Steven Mnuchin took the podium at the State Department’s Foreign Press Center in Washington to unveil what the White House claims will force Iran to abandon its nuclear and ballistic missile programs while rolling back Tehran’s influence in the Middle East region.

The sanctions hit Iran's oil exports, shipping and banking. However, the US agreed to grant waivers to eight countries -- China, India, Italy, Greece, Japan, South Korea, Taiwan and Turkey -- on Iranian oil imports.

The Iranian UN envoy further emphasized that the most recent unilateral acts and sanctions imposed by the US "brazenly and boldly" disregard the Security Council Resolution 2231 (2015), which endorses the JCPOA.

Khoshroo said the US sanctions and its previous reckless acts are specifically designed “to directly and adversely affect economic relations with Iran” by intimidating third parties and pressuring other states to abide by its political aspirations.

He added that the United States also forces other countries to violate Resolution 2231 that all states “are obligated under Article 25 of the Charter of the United Nations to accept and carry out."

"The United States’ unilateral coercive measures, in particular those with extra-territorial application, invoke discrimination against civilians on the basis of the country of residence, or nationality," the Iranian diplomat pointed out.

He said the US sanctions are in violation of the well-established principles" of non-interference in internal affairs of other countries and freedom of international trade.

The JCPOA provided for Iran to “treat such a re-introduction or re-imposition of the sanctions …as grounds to cease performing its commitments” under the nuclear accord in whole or in part, he added.

Khoshroo emphasized that Iran has scrupulously fulfilled its nuclear-related commitments under the JCPOA, as has been repeatedly and consistently verified by the consecutive reports of International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) - the latest of which was issued in August.

Despite Washington's withdrawal, Iran has not left the JCPOA yet, but stressed that the remaining signatories to the agreement have to work to offset the negative impacts of the US pullout for Iran if they wanted Tehran to remain in it. The other parties to the JCPOA have repeatedly announced that the deal is working and should stay in place.

A first round of American sanctions took effect in August, targeting Iran's access to the US dollar, metals trading, coal, industrial software, and auto sector.

In an exclusive interview over the weekend with USA TODAY, Iranian Foreign Minister Mohammad Javad Zarif said Tehran would be open to talks with the United States about a new nuclear agreement if Washington changes its "approach" to discussing the 2015 nuclear deal.

He added that Iran would weigh fresh diplomacy if there were "foundations for a fruitful dialogue" on the Iran nuclear reduction deal, stressing, "Mutual trust is not a requirement to start negotiations – mutual respect is a requirement."

Iran's Foreign Ministry Spokesman Bahram Qassemi told IRIB on Friday that the United States is seeking to wage an extensive “psychological war” against Tehran by imposing a fresh round of sanctions, stressing that the Islamic Republic has no concerns over such US bids.