The U.S. government expressed strong regret, singling out Iran as the reason the final consensus document failed to be adopted at the 2026 Review Conference held at the United Nations headquarters in New York to strengthen the Nuclear Non-Proliferation Treaty (NPT) regime.
According to a compilation of major foreign media reports including Reuters and AP on the 24th (local time), the U.S. Department of State said in a statement issued under the name of Spokesperson Tommy Pigott, "We regret that NPT member states failed to reach consensus on a final document as the conclusion of the 2026 Review Conference," and strongly condemned Iran for violating International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) safeguards and refusing to halt its nuclear activities. The department emphasized, "The inability of some NPT member states to take seriously the Iran-originated threats to the global nonproliferation regime is something the United States will address directly through continued consultations going forward."
In particular, the department leveled sharp criticism directly at Iran. The statement said, "Iran continues to violate its NPT-related safeguards agreement with the IAEA," adding, "Given the expansion of its nuclear activities without credible civilian justification, the failure to reach agreement is all the more disappointing." It went on to warn that to keep the NPT Review Conference true to its original purpose, member states must not turn a blind eye to Iran's noncompliance. It added that violators must not be allowed to undermine the NPT's core enforcement and accountability architecture.
At the review conference that concluded on the 22nd, member states had planned to issue a consensus document to strengthen cohesion in the global NPT regime. But the final deal fell through amid conflicts among member states over Iran's and North Korea's nuclear issues, compounded by pushback from major nuclear-armed states reluctant to spell out disarmament obligations. Controversy also grew after language on North Korea's denuclearization was removed during revisions to the draft.
The backdrop to the United States' strong pressure on Iran following the NPT failure is the stalled end-of-war and nuclear talks. In discussions on extending a 60-day truce, Iran has held that it cannot discuss its nuclear program unless the war ends first. In a special report published on the 23rd, the Institute for the Study of War (ISW) analyzed, "Iran is rejecting a plan to hand over its stockpile of highly enriched uranium to the United States and is maintaining that it will not commit to dismantling nuclear facilities." U.S. President Donald Trump also said on the 23rd, "We will accept only a deal that resolves core issues such as Iran's uranium enrichment and its stockpile of highly enriched uranium." With both sides far apart, experts said a breakthrough in the talks is unlikely anytime soon.