France Laments US Decision on Iran’s Fordow Site
TEHRAN (Tasnim) – France deplored a US decision to end a sanctions waiver related to Iran's Fordow nuclear facility.
"We regret the decision of the United States, following Iran's resumption of enrichment on the Fordow site, to terminate an exemption that would facilitate the conduct of civilian projects on this site," French foreign ministry spokeswoman Agnes von der Muhll told reporters in an online briefing, AFP reported.
US Secretary of State Mike Pompeo said on Monday that Washington would no longer waive sanctions related to Iran’s Fordow nuclear plant.
"President (Hassan) Rouhani recently announced that Iran will begin uranium enrichment activities at the Fordow facility. Therefore, the United States will terminate the sanctions waiver related to the nuclear facility at Fordow, effective December 15th, 2019," Pompeo told reporters on Monday, Reuters reported.
The US State Department had said last month that it renewed waivers for 90 days.
Kelsey Davenport, director of the Arms Control Association, said the decision could further jeopardize the 2015 nuclear deal between Tehran and world powers, known as the Joint Comprehensive Plan of Action (JCPOA).
“This step further risks collapsing the JCPOA because it removes a tangible benefit to Iran under the deal,” Davenport said.
The French spokeswoman further said, "Iran's resumption of enrichment activities at the Fordow site, with potentially serious proliferation consequences, is a new step that marks a regrettable acceleration of Iran's withdrawal from the Vienna agreement."
In May 2018, US President Donald Trump pulled his country out of the JCPOA.
Iran and the remaining parties launched talks to save the JCPOA after the US withdrawal, but the three EU parties to the deal (France, Britain, and Germany) have failed to ensure Iran’s economic interests.
The EU’s inaction forced Tehran to stop honoring certain commitments to the nuclear deal, including a rise in the stockpile of enriched uranium.
Iran maintains that the new measures are not designed to harm the JCPOA but to save the accord by creating a balance in the commitments.