After the transitional day. How does Iran face sanctions against its missile program?

TEHRAN — With the expiration of UN restrictions on Iran's ballistic missile program, the positions of the signatories to the nuclear deal (signed nearly eight years ago) varied between those who welcomed and others insisted on maintaining the arms embargo.

Nearly two decades later, UN sanctions on Iran have been completely lifted in accordance with the so-called "Transition Day in the nuclear deal" set for October 28, 2023, as the Security Council officially confirmed the lifting of the missile embargo on Tehran in accordance with UN Resolution 2231.

Besides Tehran's assertion that all restrictions on activities and transfers related to its ballistic missiles have expired, Moscow has said it no longer needs to abide by UN restrictions on the provision of missile technology to its ally Iran.

On the other hand, 45 countries led by the United States and its European allies pledged - in a joint statement - to adhere to the arms embargo on Tehran, along with Washington, the European Union, Britain, Australia and Canada imposing new sanctions targeting the nuclear file, ballistic missile programs and Iranian drones, causing Iranian and Chinese criticism.

Causes and responses

Reuters reported informed sources that there are 3 reasons for adhering to the arms embargo, namely Russia's use of Iranian drones against Ukraine, the possibility of Iran transferring ballistic missiles to Russia, and the need to deprive Iran of the benefits of the nuclear deal, which it violated after the withdrawal of the United States.
The Iranian Defense Ministry issued a statement saying that "accusations related to Tehran's intervention in the war on Ukraine are based on false information that is raised only for biased goals," stressing its intention to continue enhancing its missile capabilities in accordance with the national security doctrine.

Yazdan Banah, a professor of political geography at Tehran University, believes that the UN sanctions on Tehran's ballistic program have already ended in accordance with Resolution 2231 and the confirmation of the UN Security Council, describing attempts by Washington and its Western allies to keep those sanctions in place after removing the list from the United Nations website as a "heresy" that neither Iran nor other independent countries will work with.
Speaking to Al Jazeera Net, the Iranian academic believes that Western pressure to confiscate his country's legal right to sell or buy weapons in accordance with international laws will endanger international peace and security, because the recent sanctions are an infringement on international resolutions represented in the Security Council statement.

Yazdan Banah says Iran and other independent countries will not abide by Western sanctions on Tehran's missile program (Al Jazeera)

lifeless body

Yazdan Banah said that the new sanctions imposed by some Western powers recently on Tehran stem from the hostility of those countries against the Islamic Republic, as he described it, and that their stated reasons for reimposing sanctions are empty pretexts, especially accusations that Tehran supplied Russia with weapons in the Ukrainian war.

The same spokesman concluded that Western sanctions on Iran's ballistic missiles will already impede Tehran's right to export or import missile parts and conduct the necessary tests, which means that Western pressure is emptying UN Resolution 2231 of its content.

Political affairs researcher Atta Taqavi downplayed the importance of recent Western sanctions and talk of Iran's right to benefit from the results of the nuclear deal, describing the agreement as just a "lifeless body" due to the behavior of extremists in Iran and the United States.

The Iranian researcher likened the expiration of UN sanctions imposed on Iran's ballistic missile program to a fruit waving on a dry tree branch, stressing that in light of the sanctions on the sale of Iranian oil and financial exchanges, it makes no sense to talk about arms trade to and from Iran.

No expected benefits

He explained the origin of the island that his country will not reap the benefit of the Security Council lifting restrictions on ballistic missiles in light of the sanctions imposed on financial exchanges, especially the cutting of the system "SWIFT" for financial correspondence services from Iranian banks and the failure of Tehran to join the Financial Action Task Force, which has so far caused major problems in the transfer of oil revenues into Iran.

The same spokesman criticized Tehran and the Democratic administration in Washington for what he called "missing the opportunity to revive the nuclear deal," and said that the Republican administration was proactive in violating the nuclear deal, which opened the way for Iranian hawks who have long criticized it to tear it apart.

On the other hand, political researcher Reza Sadr al-Husseini considers the UN Security Council Secretariat's sending of its statement to the member states of the United Nations regarding the official expiration of items 3, 4 and 6 under Chapter B of Resolution 2231, a setback to Western efforts to extend UN sanctions on Iran.

The Security Council sends a statement to Member States on the official expiration of the provisions aimed at extending the UN sanctions on Iran (social media)

Precious Experiences

Speaking to Al Jazeera Net, the Iranian researcher explained that his country was able to provide its needs despite the financial embargo and not to join the laws of "FATF", and this was shown in the rise in its sale of oil by more than 100% during the past two years, and it has in neutralizing the effect of oil sanctions a valuable experience that can be applied in other fields.

The same researcher added that Tehran has proven its ability to manufacture very effective defense weapons, and that the Western uproar over Iran's sale of limited models of its drones to Russia before the outbreak of the war on Ukraine is the best evidence of the effectiveness of Iranian weapons.

The same spokesman concluded that many countries, including Western and Eastern countries, have submitted orders to buy Iranian drones and other models of missiles so far, adding that his country will not need to join the FATF laws or the SWIFT system to pay for its weapons, as it can agree with its customers on bilateral methods away from the financial systems that are subject to international supervision.