Canada voted against Iran's election to a key United Nations committee on Wednesday, after the UN General Assembly voted to give Tehran a seat on the body that helps shape the organisation's priorities on women's rights, human rights, disarmament and counterterrorism.

The General Assembly elected Iran to the UN Committee for Programme and Coordination by secret ballot, with 144 states voting in favour. Canada was among the countries that voted no.

Foreign Minister Anita Anand said after the vote: "Canada is steadfastly opposed to giving Iran a seat on the UN Committee for Programme and Coordination, and Canada voted against Iran's inclusion today at the UN."

A reversal from April

The vote marked a change of course for Canada. In April, the UN's 54-nation Economic and Social Council nominated Iran to the committee by consensus, and Canada, along with Britain, France, Germany, Spain, the Netherlands, Norway, Finland, Switzerland, Austria and Australia, remained silent rather than calling for a vote.

UN Watch, the Geneva-based non-governmental organisation that monitors the United Nations, welcomed Canada's decision to oppose Iran this time. Its executive director, Hillel Neuer, had called on Anand in an opinion piece in the National Post this week to request a vote at the General Assembly and rally fellow democracies to vote no.

Sanctions reimposed a day earlier

The vote came a day after Anand announced that Canada was reimposing sanctions on 11 Iranian entities under the Special Economic Measures (Iran) Regulations, saying they had contributed to the Iranian regime's nuclear and ballistic missile programmes or to the financing of its malign activities.

The entities, which include the National Iranian Oil Company, the National Iranian Tanker Company, Bank Mellat and Bank Melli Iran, were delisted in 2016 after progress under the 2015 nuclear deal, the Joint Comprehensive Plan of Action. Canada said Tehran's repeated failure to cooperate fully with the International Atomic Energy Agency had heightened concerns about its nuclear activities.

Anand announced the sanctions in Paris, where she was attending a meeting of G7 foreign ministers. She said Canada's position was unequivocal: Iran must never be allowed to obtain a nuclear weapon.

What the committee does

The Committee for Programme and Coordination is the main UN body that reviews the organisation's programmes and budgets and helps set its priorities, including on women's rights, human rights, disarmament and counterterrorism. Its members are elected by the General Assembly and the Economic and Social Council.

Canada's vote against Iran's membership places Ottawa among a minority of states that formally opposed the election, after 144 countries voted in favour. Sources: UN Watch and Global Affairs Canada.