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The Iranian nuclear programme
Foreign Minister Wadephul and his British and French counterparts as well as the High Representative of the European Union give a statement after holding talks with the Iranian Foreign Minister in Geneva (20 June 2025) © Photothek Media Lab
The E3 countries have triggered the JCPoA snapback mechanism. UN sanctions against Iran will re-enter into force within 30 days if a negotiated solution is not reached before then. This is in response to long-standing violations by Iran of its obligations under the JCPoA.
After a protracted conflict surrounding the Iranian nuclear programme due to justified doubts about its exclusively civilian nature, Germany, France, the United Kingdom, the United States, Russia, China and Iran signed the Joint Comprehensive Plan of Action (JCPoA) on 14 July 2015 in an attempt to resolve this conflict at the negotiating table.
The United Nations Security Council approved the JCPoA under Resolution 2231 (2015). As coordinator, the High Representative of the European Union plays a key role in the implementation of the JCPoA, which initially met with success.
Until mid-2019, the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) repeatedly confirmed in its quarterly reports that Iran was adhering to the JCPoA undertakings. Iran also benefited from the agreement. Sanctions were eased as agreed and the country’s economy and foreign trade with Germany and Europe grew.
The JCPOA in crisis
On 8 May 2018, US President Donald Trump announced the United States’ withdrawal from the JCPoA. The US re-imposed the sanctions against Iran that it had previously suspended and gradually enforced further restrictive measures. Many of these measures are secondary sanctions, which had an extra-territorial effect on Iran’s trading partners in third countries.
Since 2019, Iran has been gradually abandoning its nuclear-related commitments under the JCPoA and further stepped up its systematic violations of the JCPoA on the basis of a “strategic nuclear law” passed in December 2020. Iran increased its production of low-enriched uranium, began enriching uranium up to 60 percent, abandoned the agreed limits for research and development on advanced centrifuges, recommenced uranium enrichment at the underground plant in Fordow, reduced transparency with regard to its nuclear programme by restricting access for inspectors and started experiments to extract uranium metals without plausible civilian justification.
The Vienna talks on the restoration of the JCPOA
The US Administration under President Biden announced its determination to return to the nuclear agreement and to repeal the nuclear-related secondary sanctions imposed or reinstated by the previous Administration, provided Iran also adhered once again to its obligations. Negotiations between the JCPoA participants and the US were held in Vienna from April to June 2021 and from November 2021 to March 2022, during which an agreement on these issues was outlined.
However, Iran ultimately rejected the compromise packages submitted in March and August 2022 by the European External Action Service (EEAS) as JCPoA coordinator, thus preventing the complete restoration of the JCPoA. In view of Iran’s significant and ongoing breaches of the JCPoA, the E3 countries – Germany, France and the United Kingdom – have retained the nuclear-related sanctions at EU level and under UK law, although under the JCPoA these were due to be repealed on Transition Day (18 October 2023).
Triggering of the snapback mechanism and reimposition of sanctions
The Iranian nuclear programme has reached a dangerous level in 2025. Since 2019, Iran has been in significant breach of the commitments enshrined in the JCPoA. Despite intensive efforts by the E3 countries (Germany, France and the United Kingdom), Iran has not shown any willingness to meet its obligations under the JCPoA in a transparent and sustained manner. This is fuelling concerns that Iran is aiming to acquire nuclear weapons. A nuclear armed Iran would be extremely dangerous and further destabilise the already fragile region.
As a result, the E3 triggered the snapback mechanism under UN Resolution 2231 on 28 August 2025. In accordance with the JCPoA, six previously suspended UN resolutions will re-enter into force 30 days after the snapback mechanism has been triggered, i.e. at the end of September 2025. The restoring of these resolutions would mean, for example, that all UN member states would be prohibited from supplying Iran with nuclear or missile-related products; in addition, the UN Security Council would reimpose an arms embargo on Iran.
At the same time, the E3 Foreign Ministers underlined in a joint declaration that the door remains open for a negotiated solution. It is up to Iran to meet its obligations under the JCPoA, particularly as regards adhering to the limits for nuclear enrichment and working transparently with the IAEA.