EU confirms it has reinstated sanctions against Iran

The European Union confirmed on Monday that it had reinstated sanctions against Iran.

“Today, the Council agreed to reimpose a number of restrictive measures in relation to Iran's nuclear proliferation activities, that had then been suspended with the entry into force of the Joint Plan of Action (JCPoA or Iran nuclear deal) in 2015. The decision was taken after the reintroduction of the UN sanctions, following of the UN Security Council’s decision not to extend the lifting of sanctions on Iran. This occurred after the E3 (France, Germany and the United Kingdom)  invoked the “snapback” mechanism foreseen in the JCPoA," said the EU presidency in a statement.

The sanctions include freezing the assets of Iranian banks, as well as travel bans on some government officials.

Britain, France and Germany initiated the return of sanctions on Iran at the U.N. Security Council over accusations it had violated a 2015 deal that aimed to stop it developing a nuclear bomb.

Iran denies seeking nuclear weapons and has said that the sanctions are unjust and illegal.