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U.S. Ready to "Snap Back" Sanctions on Iran
(Wall Street Journal) Brian H. Hook - The 13-year-old arms embargo on the Iranian regime will expire in October, leaving the world's foremost state sponsor of terrorism and anti-Semitism free to import and export combat aircraft, warships, submarines and guided missiles. To prevent this, the Security Council must pass a resolution to extend the arms embargo. If this effort is defeated by a veto, the Trump administration is prepared to exercise all legally available options to extend the embargo. The regime plans to upgrade Iran's aging air force, improve the accuracy of its missiles, and strengthen its ability to strike ships and shoot down aircraft. Letting the arms embargo expire would make it considerably easier for Iran to ship weapons to its allies in Syria, Hamas in Gaza, and Shiite militias in Iraq. The U.S. will press ahead with diplomacy and build support to extend the embargo. Russia and China have more to gain from Mideast stability than from selling weapons to Iran for its sectarian wars. If American diplomacy is frustrated by a veto, however, UN Security Council Resolution 2231 (2015) created a legal mechanism for exclusive use by certain nations to snap sanctions back. The arms embargo is one of these sanctions. The writer is U.S. special representative for Iran and senior adviser to the secretary of state.