Iran has condemned the reinstatement of United Nations sanctions as an "unjustifiable" and "illegal" act, vowing to firmly defend its national rights after the collapse of diplomatic efforts with Western powers . The sanctions, which took effect on September 28, 2025, were triggered by the UK, France, and Germany via the "snapback" mechanism of the 2015 nuclear deal, a move that Iran, Russia, and China argue lacks a legal basis .
The Iranian foreign ministry issued a statement declaring the reactivation of previously annulled UN resolutions as "legally baseless and unjustifiable" . The ministry asserted that the country considers the UN Security Council resolution that underpinned the nuclear deal to be expiring in October as originally planned, and thus views the snapback as "null and void" . It warned that any action aimed at undermining the rights and interests of the Iranian people would "face a firm and appropriate response" . This position was supported by Iran's key allies, Russia and China, with Moscow stating that any attempts to revive the sanctions are "null and void" and threatening to "seriously reconsider" its relations with the UN Secretariat over the matter .
The reinstatement of sanctions ends months of tense diplomacy that were ultimately derailed. Western powers, known as the E3, stated they had "no choice" but to trigger the snapback due to Iran's failure to meet its commitments, specifically citing that Iran had not authorized International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) inspectors to regain access to its nuclear sites, nor accounted for its stockpile of high-enriched uranium . However, from Iran's perspective, the diplomatic path was sabotaged by unreasonable Western demands. President Masoud Pezeshkian revealed that the United States had offered only a short reprieve from sanctions in return for Iran handing over its entire stockpile of enriched uranium . He rejected this proposal as unacceptable, asking, "Why would we put ourselves in such a trap and have a noose around our neck each month?" . A last-ditch effort by Russia and China at the UN Security Council to delay the sanctions for six months was defeated, leading to the measures taking effect .
The return of sanctions has sent immediate shockwaves through an Iranian economy that was already struggling with over 40% inflation and critical shortages of power and wate. On the day the sanctions took effect, the Iranian rial plummeted to a record low, trading at nearly 1.13 million to the US dollar in Tehran's open market . This currency crash directly impacts the lives of ordinary Iranians, as it increases pressure on food prices and makes daily life more challenging . One merchant at Tehran's Grand Bazaar noted that with the dollar rising, "imported goods will get more expensive and scarce," and sales will drop because "people’s purchasing power is not going up" . An Iranian engineer lamented that the standard of living is "much lower" than it was just a few years ago.