THE HAGUE, Feb 4, 2021 (BSS/AFP) – The UN’s top court has said it can hear
Iran’s bid to overturn US nuclear sanctions reimposed by Donald Trump,
prompting “disappointment” in Washington, which had argued the issue lies
outside its jurisdiction.
Iran’s foreign minister swiftly hailed Wednesday’s decision as a “victory”
in the case launched three years ago at the International Court of Justice
(ICJ) in The Hague.
Tehran alleges that Trump, when he was US president, breached a 1955
friendship treaty between the two countries by pulling out of a 2015 nuclear
deal — to the dismay of European allies — and reactivating the sanctions.
Washington had said the Hague-based ICJ did not have jurisdiction and must
throw out the case. It also argued the sanctions were necessary because Iran
posed a “grave threat” to international security.
But judges at the court rejected all the US objections.
ICJ President Abdulqawi Ahmed Yusuf said the tribunal “finds consequently
that it has jurisdiction…. to entertain the application filed by the
Islamic Republic of Iran”.
The US State Department said it was “disappointed” by the decision.
“In the next phase of this case we’ll explain why Iran’s claim has no
merits,” spokesman Ned Price said.
A final ruling on sanctions by the ICJ — set up after World War II to
rule in disputes between UN member states — could still be months or even
years away.
The 2015 nuclear deal saw Tehran limit its nuclear powers and let in
international inspectors, in return for an end to years of sanctions by the
West.
After Trump pulled out, Iran invoked the 1955 “Treaty of Amity”, which
predates the 1979 Islamic revolution that overthrew the pro-US shah and
severed ties with the United States.
Iran said the reimposition of sanctions caused “hardship and suffering”
and was “ruining millions of lives”.
– Rouhani rejects changes –
It is the second win for Iran in the case, after the ICJ ordered the US in
2018 to ease sanctions on humanitarian goods as an emergency measure while
the overall lawsuit is dealt with.
In response, Washington formally ended the Treaty of Amity that same year.
“Another legal victory for Iran,” foreign minister Mohammad Javad Zarif
tweeted on Wednesday.
“Iran has always fully respected int’l law. High time for the US to live
up to its int’l obligations,” Zarif said.
The 2015 nuclear deal involving the five permanent members of the UN
Security Council — Britain, China, France, Russia and the US, plus Germany –
– has hung by a thread since Trump pulled out.
Iranian President Hassan Rouhani earlier Wednesday ruled out changes to the
nuclear accord and dismissed calls to broaden the terms of the deal and
include regional countries.
New US President Joe Biden has voiced support for returning to the deal
but insisted that Tehran must first resume full compliance by reversing
measures it took to protest the sweeping sanctions imposed by his
predecessor.
The Biden administration argues that Trump’s actions badly backfired, with
Iran both moving away from the nuclear deal and only intensifying its
opposition to US interests.
Zarif on Monday asked the European Union to help coordinate a return to
the nuclear deal.