The Security Council had unanimously adopted resolutions against the Iran-Iraq War twice in 1986, in resolutions
582 and
588. However, neither resolution was implemented by the warring parties. Resolution 598 was drafted in the wake of a report compiled at the behest of the Secretary-General which found that Iraq
had used chemical weapons against Iranian troops. Unlike the previous two resolutions, resolution 598 was adopted under
Chapter VII of the UN Charter, meaning that non-compliance could result in economic or military intervention. On 20 July, the Security Council invited
Ismat Kittani, representative of Iraq, to a discussion of the war as a non-voting member. Its resolution, passed after this discussion, reaffirmed resolution 582 and demanded an immediate ceasefire and requested UN supervision of said ceasefire among other provisions. Two days after the resolution was issued, Iraq accepted it, but Iran refused to. Then-President
Ali Khamenei stated that the resolution was the result of pro-Iraqi American pressure on the Security Council, and Supreme Leader
Khomeini declared that, as final victory in the war was imminent, accepting a ceasefire would be tantamount to treason. In September 1987, Khamenei flew to New York to attend the General Assembly and deliver a speech. Prior to the speech, American President Ronald Reagan asked for an unambiguous answer on the resolution from Khamenei; should Khamenei's answer be negative, the United States had no choice but to implement sanctions against Iran. In his speech, delivered on September 21, Khamenei reiterated that Iran was opposed to a ceasefire, and intended to "punish" Iraq's aggression. Despite Iran's refusal to accept, the
US Navy, the
French Navy and the
British Navy as well as other navies local to the
Persian Gulf enforced the resolution at sea. In an interview on 4 October 1987 aboard the flagship of the US forces,
USS La Salle,
Rear Admiral Harold Bernsen said "Of course we talk with them (the other navies), and we cooperate, but we don't have a joint command, what I would call a combined or coordinated military operation." By the
Second Battle of al-Faw in spring 1988, Iran began to worry about the tenability of the war.
IRGC Commander-in-Chief
Mohsen Rezaee delivered a "shocking" assessment to Khomeini that Iran would only be able to recommence offensive operations after 1992. In his 2015 memoir,
Akbar Rafsanjani recounted that, by early summer 1988, the sentiment in Tehran was that continuation of the war was "no longer expedient". Khomeini remained resistant, but on the 15th convened a meeting and announced his begrudging acceptance of peace citing the assessment of Iranian commanders that a victory within the next five years was impossible. Iran accepted in a 17 July letter to the secretary-general, and on the same night, the news was broadcast to the Iranian people. On July 19th, in a public pronouncement on the one-year anniversary of the
1987 Mecca massacre, Khomeini spoke of Iran's acceptance of the resolution. Khomeini's statement that he was "drinking the cup of poison" became one of his most memorable and enduring quotes: "Happy are those who have departed through martyrdom. Unhappy am I that I still survive.…
Taking this decision is more deadly than drinking from a poisoned chalice. I submitted myself to Allah's will and took this drink for His satisfaction." According to Rafsanjani's son, Khomeini desired to step down as supreme leader after his acceptance of the resolution; Rafsanjani attempted to sign the decision and thus take responsibility himself, but was rebuffed. Khomeini nonetheless would remain Supreme Leader until his death on 3 June 1989. Iran's withdrawal from Iraqi territory was chaotic and bungled. War-weary Iranian soldiers laid down their arms upon hearing the news (despite the fact that the resolution was yet to be implemented), allowing Iraqi and
MEK forces to make late gains. On 24 July, Khomeini ordered the creation of a
drumhead "special war tribunal" tasked with the execution of officers who were responsible for territorial and military losses. Negotiations began in New York on 26 July as fighting continued. ==Implementation and aftermath==