Roundup: Senior UN official urges efforts to carry out plan of action on Iran nuclear issue

A senior UN official on Monday urged efforts to implement the Joint Comprehensive Plan of Action (JCPOA), under which Iran reaffirmed that it would not seek, develop or acquire nuclear weapons.

"Fully implemented, the JCPOA will reinforce global non-proliferation norms, and assure the international community of the exclusively peaceful nature of Iran's nuclear programme," Jeffrey Feltman, the UN under-secretary-general for political affairs, said at an open meeting of the UN Security Council.

The JCPOA, also known as the Iran deal, is an international agreement on the nuclear program of Iran reached in Vienna on July 14, 2015 between Iran, the P5+1 (the five permanent members of the UN Security Council -- Britain, China, France, Russia and United States -- plus Germany), and the European Union.

Under the agreement, Iran agreed to eliminate its stockpile of medium-enriched uranium, cut its stockpile of low-enriched uranium by 98 percent, and reduce by about two-thirds the number of its gas centrifuges for 13 years. For the next 15 years, Iran will only enrich uranium up to 3.67 percent.

Feltman noted also that lifting sanctions as a result of abiding with the JCPOA will "help to realize the long-awaited hopes and aspirations of the Iranian people to be reconnected to the global economy and the international community."

The 15-nation Security Council endorsed the JCPOA on July 20, 2015 in resolution 2231, calling it a "culmination of diplomatic efforts" by the E3+3 -- which includes Britain, China, France, Germany, Russia and the United States -- and Iran.

Presenting the secretary-general's first report on implementation of the resolution, Feltman told the Security Council that since Jan. 16 of this year, UN Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon "has not received any report, nor is he aware of any open source information, regarding the supply, sale, transfer or export to Iran of nuclear-related items undertaken contrary to the provisions of the JCPOA."

In addition, since that date, the UN Secretariat has received "no information regarding the supply, sale, transfer or export to Iran of ballistic missile-related items undertaken contrary to the provisions of resolution 2231 (2015)."

However, in early March 2016, during military exercises, Iran launched a series of ballistic missiles. The report includes details from Iranian media and from information provided to the secretary-general from Britain, France, Germany and the United States.

"While it is for the Security Council to interpret its own resolutions," Feltman said, "the secretary-general stressed that we must maintain the momentum created by the conclusion of the Joint Comprehensive Plan of Action, consistent with its constructive spirit."

"In this regard, he calls upon Iran to avoid such ballistic missile launches which have the potential to increase tensions in the region," he said.

The latest report focused on the restrictive measures in Annex B to the resolution which includes restrictions on nuclear-related transfers and activities, ballistic missile-related transfers and activities, arms-related transfers, as well as an assets freeze and a travel ban.

It did not report on other provisions of the resolution or Annex A (on the JCPOA), nor touch upon the work of the Joint Commission established in the agreement.

The next report of the secretary-general will be submitted to the Security Council in January 2017. Enditem