Overview

• Russia and China submitted a rival draft to extend the 2015 decision by six months to allow more diplomacy, a move viewed as unlikely to secure backing from the US, UK and France.
• Iran rejected the European move, arguing the trio have not met their own obligations and asserting a preference for a diplomatic solution with more time.
• Deputy-level talks in Geneva on August 26 ended without progress after earlier European warnings that action would follow if no path to a deal emerged by late August.
• Under the snapback design, previously lifted UN sanctions automatically return if the Council does not adopt a resolution to sustain relief within 30 days, and a single veto can block that sustaining measure.
• The scramble is sharpened by a mid-October expiry for the underlying UN decision and by stalled US–Iran talks following June strikes on Iranian nuclear facilities.