Iran unveils new missiles as tensions between Washington and Tehran mount over arms embargo

The latest revelation comes as the Trump administration pushed members of the U.N. Security Council to extend a U.N.-imposed arms embargo on Iran. The embargo is currently set to end in October under the 2015 nuclear deal brokered, in part, by the Obama administration. 

Last week, the U.N. Security Council voted to not extend the international arms embargo on Iran, a decision that prompted Secretary of State Mike Pompeo to formally notify the group on Thursday of the U.S. intention to ‘snap back’ or restore all U.N. sanctions on Iran.

Thirty days after Pompeo’s notification, a range of U.N. sanctions will be restored, including the requirement that Iran suspends all enrichment-related activities. The ‘snap back’ will also extend the 13-year arms embargo on Iran.

“Secretary Pompeo’s notification to the Council follows its inexcusable failure last week to extend the arms embargo on the world’s leading state sponsor of terrorism and anti-Semitism,” Morgan Ortagus, State Department spokeswoman wrote in an emailed statement.

Tensions between Washington and Tehran have mounted following Trump’s withdrawal from the landmark Iran nuclear deal in 2018, calling it “the worst deal ever.”

The 2015 nuclear agreement lifted sanctions on Iran that crippled its economy and cut its oil exports roughly in half. In exchange for sanctions relief, Iran accepted limits on its nuclear program and allowed international inspectors into its facilities.

Trump has previously said that the U.S. wants to reach a broader deal with Iran that puts stricter limits on its nuclear and ballistic missile work and suppresses the regime’s role in regional proxy wars. Tehran has refused to negotiate while U.S. sanctions remain in place.

Article source: https://www.cnbc.com/2020/08/20/iran-unveils-new-missiles-amid-tensions-with-washington.html