The foreign ministers of France, Germany, the U.K. and the EU foreign policy chief told Secretary of State Marco Rubio they will trigger the "snapback" sanctions mechanism against Iran on Thursday, three sources with direct knowledge told Axios.

Why it matters: The "snapback" mechanism automatically reimposes all UN Security Council sanctions that were lifted under the 2015 Iran nuclear deal. • The move is expected to increase the economic pressure on Iran and likely lead to an Iranian retaliation. • Iranian officials have threatened in the past that triggering the "snapback" mechanism would lead itr to withdraw from the nuclear non-proliferation treaty (NPT). • The State Department declined to comment on the matter.

Driving the news: France, Germany and the U.K. gave Iran until th

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