Escalation in the nuclear dispute: Iran calls threat of sanctions "unlawful"

ARCHIVE - Iranian Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi. Photo: Vahid Salemi/AP/dpa/Archive photo

Keystone

Iran has sharply criticized the escalation of the nuclear dispute. The reintroduction of UN sanctions against the Islamic Republic initiated by Germany, the UK and France (E3) was "baseless and unlawful", said Iran's Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi.

Keystone-SDA

28.08.2025, 17:40

The E3 should immediately rectify the move and adopt a responsible and realistic approach in the coming days, Tehran's chief diplomat said in a telephone call with his European counterparts and EU foreign policy chief Kaja Kallas, the Irna news agency reported. Otherwise, the Islamic Republic would react appropriately to this "unjustified act", Araghchi added.

Possible countermeasures by Tehran include the suspension of cooperation with the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) and withdrawal from the Nuclear Non-Proliferation Treaty. The E3 had previously triggered the mechanism to reintroduce UN sanctions against Tehran at the UN Security Council.

At the heart of the nuclear dispute with Iran is the international community's concern about Iran building a nuclear bomb. Tehran regularly rejects this suspicion.