Iran’s FM Slams E3 for 'Parroting Absurd US Claims'
TEHRAN (Tasnim) – Iran’s foreign minister criticized the E3 – France, Germany, and the UK – for failing to fulfill their obligations under the JCPOA due to US pressures, stressing that no new deal will be negotiated until the current one is fully honored.
“E3's paralysis in fulfilling their obligations w/o US permission has been clear since May 2018. Solution to this deficiency: mustering will to forge independent path—not parroting absurd US claims & requests INCONSISTENT with JCPOA. No new deal before compliance w/ current one,” Zarif, who is in New York attending the annual gathering of world leaders at the United Nations, tweeted on Tuesday.
The tweet came after the leaders of France, Germany, and the United Kingdom in a joint statement on Monday strongly condemned the September 14 attacks on oil facilities in Abqaiq and Khurais, and pinned the blame on Tehran.
"It is clear to us that Iran bears responsibility for this attack. There is no other plausible explanation," the statement read.
"We support ongoing investigations to establish further details," it added.
The statement came after British Prime Minister Boris Johnson leveled the same accusations against Iran while speaking to reporters on the plane while flying to New York to attend the 74th session of the United Nations General Assembly.
Iranian President Hassan Rouhani is also in New York to address the gathering on Wednesday.
In a meeting with his French counterpart Emanuel Macron on Monday, Rouhani also rejected the statement as "groundless blame game".
The Yemeni forces on September 14 launched drone attacks on two plants at the heart of Saudi Arabia's oil industry, including the world's biggest petroleum processing facility.
The attacks came in retaliation for the Saudi-led coalition’s continued aggression on the Arabian Peninsula country.
Since March 2015, Saudi Arabia and some of its Arab allies have been carrying out deadly airstrikes against the Houthi Ansarullah movement in an attempt to restore power to fugitive former president Abd Rabbuh Mansour Hadi, a close ally of Riyadh.