Donald Trump expected to launch broadside on Iran at UN General Assembly
Today President Donald Trump will chair a UN Security Council meeting on Iran’s “violations of international law” and Tehran’s alleged role in sowing instability in the Middle East. Russia’s Deputy UN Ambassador Dimitry Polyanskiy rebuked this agenda, instead suggesting that the meeting should focus on the implementation of the 2015 nuclear deal.
The meeting comes after numerous failed attempts by the US to get the Security Council to condemn Iran, exemplified by its May push to denounce Iranian complicity for allowing its missiles to fall into the hands of Yemen’s Houthi rebels. The US is likely trying to leverage its current presidency of the Security Council to achieve an anti-Iran resolution—though Russia is almost certain to veto any such move.
Even if no resolution is achieved, the meeting may further undermine the nuclear deal by riling up anti-Iran sentiment through discussion of linkages between Tehran and various non-state armed groups.
However, the possibility of this resolution having a significant impact is unlikely considering the growing rift between the US and European powers on the nuclear deal. Indeed, France may not support the resolution considering its potential effect on the nuclear deal. Ned Price, a National Security Council Adviser under Obama, has predicted that the Trump administration’s Iran resolution would be blocked by parallel talks.
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