(MENAFN) Iran’s Foreign Ministry on Sunday denounced the recent move by France, Britain, Germany—collectively known as the E3—and the United States to restore United Nations Security Council (UNSC) sanctions on Iran as “illegal and unjustified.”

The announcement came just hours after UN sanctions were reactivated, a decade after being lifted under the 2015 nuclear agreement, the Joint Comprehensive Plan of Action (JCPOA), between Iran and global powers.

The ministry’s statement declared that Iran “rejects the claim by the three European countries and the United States about the reinstatement of the previous resolutions that have been terminated under Resolution 2231 (that endorses the JCPOA) in 2015, and stresses that no obligation arises for UN members, including Iran, from the annulled resolutions’ provisions and mechanisms.”

It urged all nations to avoid recognizing what it termed an “illegal situation, which is in contradiction with UNSC Resolution 2231,” accusing the E3 and the US of “abusing” the JCPOA’s dispute resolution process and the framework of Resolution 2231.

Iran pledged to protect its rights and national interests vigorously, warning that any attempts to undermine those interests “will be met with an appropriate and resolute response.”

In a letter to UN Secretary-General Antonio Guterres on Saturday, Iranian Foreign Minister Seyed Abbas Araghchi criticized the use of the “snapback” mechanism to reimpose sanctions as a “clear abuse of process,” according to the ministry.

Last month, the E3 formally activated the snapback provision, which enables the restoration of UN sanctions within 30 days if Iran is found violating the JCPOA.

On September 19, the UNSC failed to pass a resolution extending sanctions relief for Iran under the JCPOA. A follow-up proposal seeking a six-month extension for both the JCPOA and Resolution 2231 also fell short on Friday. Consequently, the sanctions were reinstated on Saturday evening.

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