Extension of Anti-Iran Sanctions ‘Clear Breach’ of JCPOA: Nuclear Chief
TEHRAN (Tasnim) – The head of the Atomic Energy Organization of Iran (AEOI) denounced a recent move by the US Senate to vote for a bill to extend sanctions against Iran for another ten years as a “clear violation” of the JCPOA, the July 2015 nuclear deal between Tehran and world powers.
“This act (the Iran Sanctions Act) does exist currently but the US president has suspended it… but if the law comes into force again, it would be a clear breach of the Joint Comprehensive Plan of Action (JCPOA),” Ali Akbar Salehi told the Islamic Republic of Iran Broadcasting (IRIB) on Friday.
He further pointed to a possible appropriate reaction to the US legislation by Iran and said the Islamic Republic has taken necessary precautions and is braced for the US moves.
Salehi added that possible reactions to the US violations of the JCPOA are not going to be made public for the time being.
The US Senate voted unanimously on Thursday to extend the Iran Sanctions Act (ISA) for another decade.
The measure passed the Senate by 99-0. It passed the House of Representatives nearly unanimously in November, and congressional aides said they expected President Barack Obama would sign it.
The ISA will expire on Dec. 31 if not renewed. The White House had not pushed for an extension, but had not raised serious objections.
Meanwhile, a senior lawmaker on Friday said Iran’s parliament is weighing a series of measures in response to the US Congress.
Bahrouz Nemati, spokesman for parliament’s presiding board, said some 220 lawmakers have prepared a resolution which condemns US extension of the sanctions.
A two-starred motion on prohibiting US-made products is also moving through the chamber for approval, Nemati added.
The parliament is expected to take other counter-measures against the ISA extension which he did not specify.
While the JCPOA, the nuclear agreement between Iran and the Group 5+1 (Russia, China, the US, Britain, France and Germany) came into force in January, some Iranian officials complain about the US failure to fully implement the accord.
Leader of the Islamic Revolution Ayatollah Seyed Ali Khamenei said last month that if the sanctions were extended, Iran would definitely respond to it.