UN Security Council meeting. Reuters Yonhap News. 

Russia criticized the UN Security Council's vote to restore sanctions on Iran related to its nuclear program development, stating it would "only further escalate tensions."

Specifically, Russia targeted the United States and European countries, which voted against a resolution to maintain sanctions relief for Iran, as well as South Korea, which drafted and submitted the resolution as the September president of the Security Council.

In a statement on August 20 (local time), the Russian Foreign Ministry said, "Russia has repeatedly criticized the provocative and illegitimate nature of the actions by European countries, participants in the Joint Comprehensive Plan of Action (JCPOA), and their influenced proxy, South Korea, the President of the UN Security Council."

It added, "These actions have nothing to do with diplomacy and will only exacerbate tensions surrounding Iran's nuclear program."

The Russian Foreign Ministry claimed it was predictable that the US, which is exerting unprecedented pressure on European countries and non-permanent Security Council members, would oppose a resolution to maintain sanctions relief for Iran.

It further stated, "South Korea's abstention on the resolution it submitted itself is noteworthy," adding, "We perceive this as South Korea's 'self-disclosure' and a signal that South Korea is well aware of the legal and procedural futility of its own proposal and the failure of the European snapback claim."

The UN Security Council previously rejected a resolution to maintain sanctions relief related to Iran's nuclear program development. Consequently, UN sanctions against Iran will be restored starting on the 28th of this month, unless a separate agreement is reached on the Iranian nuclear program.

In the vote, four countries, including Russia, China, Pakistan, and Algeria, voted in favor of maintaining sanctions relief, while nine countries, including France, the United Kingdom, and the United States, voted against it. South Korea and Guyana abstained. The resolution submitted by South Korea was intended to maintain sanctions relief for Iran, but this was a procedural requirement for 'rejection' within the snapback procedure.

South Korea submitted this resolution based on the clause stipulating that the president of the council must submit a resolution if one is not submitted within ten days of the initiation of the snapback procedure.

In 2015, Iran signed a nuclear deal with the US, UK, France, Germany, Russia, and China, in which it agreed to suspend parts of its nuclear program in exchange for some UN sanctions relief. The Iran nuclear deal effectively lost its efficacy in 2018 when the Donald Trump administration unilaterally withdrew from it. Since then, after Iran enriched uranium above the concentration limits set in the nuclear deal for seven years, the UK, France, and Germany notified the Security Council on August 28th of their intention to initiate the snapback procedure, citing Iran's material breach of the agreement.

Russia has been strengthening its military and diplomatic ties with Iran since the 'special military operation' in Ukraine.

Yonhap News