Iran Withdraws Resolution Banning Attacks on Nuclear Sites After U.S. Pressure
Iran defers action on a draft IAEA resolution condemning attacks on nuclear facilities as Washington lobbies to block adoption and as allies push renewed sanctions.
Iran withdrew a resolution that it had proposed with China, Russia and other cosponsors to the IAEA General Conference, which would ban attacks on nuclear facilities. The move came at the last minute on Thursday, hours before the annual gathering of IAEA member states. Iran's ambassador to the United Nations in Vienna, Reza Najafi, announced the deferral, saying it was done in the spirit of goodwill and at the request of several member states.
Western diplomats said the United States had pressed to block adoption behind the scenes, including threats to cut funding to the IAEA if the draft moved ahead or if the agency considered curtailing Israel’s rights within the body. The draft text condemned the June 2025 attacks on Iran’s nuclear sites as unlawful and reaffirmed that states must refrain from attacking peaceful nuclear facilities. The resolution was cosponsored by Cuba, Nicaragua, Venezuela, Belarus and Zimbabwe, among others.
Najafi said the aim was not to sow division and that at issues of such importance member states should present a unified, unambiguous message. He noted the value of a robust and independent IAEA voice free of external pressure.
Iran’s civilian atomic energy chief, Mohammad Eslami, had warned at the IAEA General Conference earlier this week that member states should take appropriate measures in response to what he described as unlawful attacks on nuclear facilities. He also criticized the threats and political pressure exerted on the agency, including budget leverage by the United States.
Howard Solomon, the U.S. charge d’affaires and acting permanent representative at the U.S. Mission to International Organizations in Vienna, said the draft painted an inaccurate picture of recent events, distorted international law and quoted from documents out of context. He added that the resolution would have been overwhelmingly defeated if put to a vote.
The withdrawal comes as U.S. allies have begun the clock on reimposing U.N. sanctions on Iran over what they say is noncompliance with the 2015 nuclear deal. The process, known as snapback, could take effect in about a month and would start a 30-day countdown to the resumption of sanctions unless diplomacy yields a settlement. European governments have said they would consider extending the deadline if Iran resumes direct negotiations with the United States, grants U.N. inspectors access to its nuclear sites, and accounts for the more than 400 kilograms of highly enriched uranium the U.N. watchdog says Tehran possesses.
French President Emmanuel Macron, when asked whether the snapback was a done deal, indicated it was likely given the latest Iranian signals, though he stressed that diplomacy remained open.
The IAEA General Conference consists of high-ranking representatives from the agency’s 180 member states and meets annually in Vienna to approve the budget and consider resolutions on nuclear safety and security. The current episode unfolds amid a broader international effort to address Tehran’s nuclear program and a renewed push by Washington and its partners to constrain Iran through sanctions and diplomacy.