Comment by the Permanent Mission of Russia to the UN on the Blocking of the UNSC Program of Work for March 2026
On March 2, Russia, along with China, objected to the adoption of the US-drafted program of work of the UN Security Council for the month of March, 2026.
We were compelled to take this step because the provisional program of work proposed by the US included a briefing on the work of the 1737 Sanctions Committee concerning Iran, whose work was allegedly resumed in September 2025 following the triggering by the UK, France, and Germany of the “snapback” mechanism to reimpose the anti-Iranian Security Council resolutions.
The Russian Federation, together with a number of other UN member States, has repeatedly explained that, as a matter of fact, no “snapback” has occurred. At relevant UNSC briefings and in our letters on this matter, we have clarified the reasons why the E3 had no right to invoke this mechanism. There is no consensus within the Security Council on the legality of the actions taken by the UK, France, and Germany. Nor can one-sided claims of Western countries be justified by any unlawful and arbitrary steps taken by the UN Secretariat in this regard. Thus, there are no legal or procedural grounds for resuming the work of the 1737 Committee and holding briefings on its work at the Security Council.
In February, we once again brought our position on this matter to the attention of our US colleagues, urging them to refrain from including such an event in the provisional program of work. Unfortunately, our appeal remained unheeded. For this very reason, we had no other choice but to object to the adoption of the UNSC program of work for March.
