What goals does Iran pursue by raising a legal case against the United States?

Tabnak – As the United States has been trying recently to increase pressures on Iran by initiating an economic war with the means of sanctions, the Islamic Republic has resorted to the International Court of Justice to block the hostile American measures. Meanwhile, the remarks of the high-ranking Iranian officials show that they’re in no illusion regarding the final court decision.

In this vein, An Iranian deputy foreign minister said the judicial process of Tehran’s complaint against the US for breaching the 1955 Treaty of Amity will be lengthy, adding also that any final decision by the court will be nonbinding.

Speaking on a radio program on Wednesday, Abbas Araqchi said the judicial process of Iran’s complaint against the US at the International Court of Justice (ICJ) and its demand for the suspension of US sanctions recently re-imposed on Tehran will be lengthy. He also said that any final court ruling on the case will be nonbinding under the international law.

The deputy foreign minister then explained that Iran has not taken the case to court to see the US lose the trial, but has launched the process to “display the Islamic Republic of Iran’s rightfulness to the international community.” Taking the case to court would mount political and mental pressure on the US, Araqchi added.

His remarks come as the US lawyers have called on the ICJ to dismiss the Iranian lawsuit calling for a lifting of sanctions against the Islamic Republic and have insisted that sanctions are legal and needed.

US State Department Legal Adviser Jennifer Newstead argued on Tuesday, the second day of oral arguments in the case that Iran's appeal based on the 1955 Treaty of Amity, was a legal dodge.

"Iran is endeavoring to use the procedures of the Treaty of Amity to enforce rights that it claims under an entirely different (agreement) that specifically excludes judicial remedies," she told judges in the court's wood-paneled Great Hall of Justice.

Newstead argued that the disagreements between the United States and Iran should be resolved through diplomacy and not by the court. Newstead further told the ICJ in The Hague that it "lacks prima facie jurisdiction to hear Iran's claims."

"The United States does intend, lawfully and for good reason, to bring heavy pressure to bear on the Iranian leadership to change their ways,” she told judges. "We do this in the interests of US national security as well as in pursuit of a more peaceful Middle East and a more peaceful world."

Iran has recently filed a lawsuit against the United States stating that Washington's decision in May to re-impose sanctions after pulling out of the 2015 nuclear deal violates the 1955 Treaty of Amity between the two countries.

On Monday, Iran's lawyers said the sanctions were threatening the welfare of its citizens and disrupting tens of billions of dollars worth of business deals.