The UN’s top court has ordered the United States to lift the trade sanctions it imposed on Iran in humanitarian aid and aviation.

The International Court of Justice’s decision, which was adopted unanimously, was seen as a victory for Iran after President Donald Trump’s move to take his country out of the 2015 international nuclear deal.

Under the ICJ’s definition, “humanitarian” goods can refer to food and medicines. The ruling is binding and cannot be appealed, but the court has no means of enforcing it.

During four days of hearings in late August, Tehran had argued the US has breached a “friendship treaty” between the two countries that was signed in 1955 — before Iran’s Islamic revolution.

It could encourage some European compnies to resume trading with Iran after they stopped earlier this year for fear of being closed out of the US market.

The Iran nuclear deal was agreed in 2015 under Mr Trump’s predecessor Barack Obama, alongside Britain, China, France, Germany and Russia.

Under its terms Iran agreed to open its nuclear programme up to international scrutiny in exchange for reduced international sanctions.

But Mr Trump, a long-time critic, officially re-imposed the sanctions in August, three months after he announced was pulling the US out of the agreement.

A second round of measures was due to be announced next month.

Peter Hoekstra, the US ambassador to the Netherlands, where the court is based, said: “This is a meritless case over which the court has no jurisdiction. Even so, it is worth nothing that the Court declined today to grant the sweeping measures requested by Iran.

Iran said the court’s decision was a “victory for rule of law.”