Geopolitics & Resilience
2026-04-26
11 minute read
Iran 2026: snapback aftermath, the 60 percent stockpile, and the second maximum pressure cycle
The E3 triggered the JCPOA snapback in September 2025, restoring six United Nations Security Council resolutions on Iran. The IAEA verified 274.6 kilograms of 60 percent enriched uranium before camera dismantlement. Trump's NSPM 2 has reactivated maximum pressure on roughly 1.6 to 1.8 million barrels per day of Iranian crude exports flowing primarily to Chinese teapot refiners.
On September 27, 2025, snapback under United Nations Security Council Resolution 2231 paragraph 11 entered into force after the United Kingdom, France, and Germany invoked the dispute resolution mechanism on August 28. Six pre 2015 UN sanctions resolutions returned, ending the JCPOA framework de jure. The IAEA Director General report GOV/...