Snapback sanctions will be imposed on Iran by month’s end, Macron says

Snapback sanctions on Iran will be triggered at the end of this month, French President Emmanuel Macron said in an interview with Israel’s Channel 12 on Thursday.

Asked if the return of UN sanctions on Iran was a "done deal," Macron answered: “Yes, I think so. Because the latest news we have from the Iranians are not serious."

Iran’s Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi, he added, “tried to make a reasonable offer” to reach a deal with European powers, but did not receive backing from other members of the Iranian ruling system.

Iran made a new proposal to the E3 nations Britain, Germany and France on Wednesday to avoid the return of UN sanctions, Wall Street Journal journalist Laurence Norman reported on X earlier on Thursday.

The E3 views the proposal as insufficient because it seeks major concessions without any concrete Iranian action, Norman added, citing an unnamed source.

Seperately, Axios journalist Barak Ravid wrote on X that a draft resolution to extend the suspension of UN sanctions on Iran will be circulated at the Security Council on Thursday, with a vote scheduled for Friday.

Barak said the resolution is not expected to pass, which would trigger the “snapback” mechanism, leading to the reimposition of sanctions on Iran at 8 p.m. ET on September 27.

The three European powers triggered the snapback process on August 28 under Resolution 2231, demanding Iran return to talks, grant wider access to inspectors, and account for its missing uranium stockpiles.

On Wednesday, European foreign ministers urged Iran to resume nuclear talks, allow inspections of sensitive sites and curb its stockpile of highly enriched uranium.

Last week, Iran's foreign minister Abbas Araghchi said that if the E3 move to activate the snapback mechanism to reimpose UN sanctions, "they will be excluded from nuclear negotiations with the Islamic Republic."