Bijan Nobaveh Vatan, a member of Iran’s parliament, has downplayed the impact of the recent reactivation of the UN snapback mechanism against Iran, saying it will have minimal effect on the country’s economy. Speaking to Mehr News Agency, he argued that the move will mainly create a “negative psychological atmosphere” rather than tangible economic consequences. He emphasized that Iran has already endured far harsher unilateral sanctions imposed by the United States and Europe, which have had a much greater impact on its economic and banking sectors.
Nobaveh stressed that the snapback mechanism lacks legal legitimacy, asserting that Iran has fulfilled — and even exceeded — its obligations under the Joint Comprehensive Plan of Action (JCPOA). He accused Western powers of violating their own commitments, noting that the United States withdrew from the deal while European parties failed to uphold their promises. According to him, the current attempt to invoke the mechanism represents an abuse of international law and is politically motivated against the Islamic Republic.
He further noted that Iran possesses strong leverage and significant means to counter such pressures. Nobaveh pointed out that major powers like Russia and China have explicitly stated that the activation of the snapback mechanism has no legal basis. He reiterated that Iran’s position remains firm and that the country will continue to resist what he described as irrational and unilateral Western actions.
The lawmaker also criticized European countries—specifically France, Germany, and the UK—for their “disgraceful historical record” in dealing with Iran, accusing them of past colonial practices and complicity in supplying chemical weapons to Iraq’s Ba’athist regime. Concluding his remarks, Nobaveh expressed confidence that Iran will overcome this challenge as it has many others, predicting that it will ultimately be Europe’s own economies and exports that suffer as a result of these anti-Iran measures.
