Reduction in Iran’s JCPOA Commitments Reversible: President
TEHRAN (Tasnim) – The president of Iran said the country’s legitimate decision to scale back commitments under the 2015 nuclear deal could be reversed, provided that the other parties fulfill their undertakings and meet a 60-day deadline that started on May 8.
Addressing a cabinet session on Wednesday, President Hassan Rouhani said nobody can blame Iran for backing off from certain commitments under the Joint Comprehensive Plan of Action (JCPOA), because Tehran’s move was absolutely legal and in accordance with the articles of the nuclear deal.
He also made it clear that if the remaining parties to the nuclear deal honor their commitments within the 2-month deadline, Iran could reverse the activities and measures that have taken place since May 8 and “return to the first point.”
The president emphasized, however, that Iran will carry out its new measures if the other side fails to meet the deadline.
“Sadly, the spirit of the JCPOA has been damaged by them and some of the parties of the other side,” Rouhani deplored, saying the deal’s spirit is supposed to be easier trade and economic interaction with Iran.
He further took a swipe at the US for breaching international treaties, including the JCPOA, and denounced the American sanctions on Iran as “crime against humanity and economic terrorism.”
Rouhani said he has received official reports that the Americans have conceded defeat in dealing with Iran during major meetings with world leaders, adding that US President Donald Trump has in a meeting with a foreign leader blamed his adviser John Bolton for raising the wrong idea of pressuring Iran to bring it to its knees.
Iran and the Group 5+1 (Russia, China, US, Britain, France, and Germany) on July 14, 2015, reached a conclusion over the text of the 2015 nuclear deal. The accord took effect in January 2016 and was supposed to terminate all nuclear-related sanctions against Iran all at once, but its implementation was hampered by the US policies and its eventual withdrawal from the deal.
On May 8, 2018, Trump pulled the US out of the nuclear accord. Afterwards, Iran and the remaining parties launched talks to save the accord.
However, the EU’s failure to ensure Iran’s economic interests forced Tehran to stop honoring certain commitments under JCPOA in May 2019.
For the first step, Iran has ceased to observe the limits on uranium enrichment and begun to produce an unlimited amount of heavy water at the Arak nuclear facility during the 60-day deadline.