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Tehran: Iranian Foreign Minister Mohammad Javad Zarif on Wednesday expressed his country’s readiness for an “automatic” return to its obligations under the nuclear deal should the United States lift the sanctions it imposed after its unilateral withdrawal. two years ago, while stating that Washington’s return to the deal is not a “priority.” .
The outgoing US president, Donald Trump, adopted a policy of “maximum pressure” against Iran, and in 2018 unilaterally withdrew from the agreement between it and the major powers, and reimposed tough economic sanctions on Tehran.
However, the president-elect of the United States, Joe Biden, hinted at the possibility of returning Washington to the nuclear deal, but on the condition that Tehran once again fulfills its obligations.
Almost a year after the US withdrawal, Iran gradually backtracked on many of the basic obligations contained in the agreement that was affirmed under UN Security Council Resolution 2231.
“There is something that can be done automatically and does not require any conditions or negotiation,” Zarif said in an interview with the Iranian state newspaper published today. The United States is implementing its obligations under Resolution 2231, and we are implementing our commitments under the Joint Comprehensive Plan of Action, ”which is the official name of the nuclear agreement.
“This matter does not require negotiations or conditions. It can be done.”
The 2015 agreement in Vienna between Iran, on the one hand, and the United States, France, Great Britain, China, Russia, and Germany, on the other, allowed the lifting of many economic sanctions that were imposed on the Islamic Republic.
This came in exchange for Tehran reducing the level of its nuclear activities and ensuring that the major powers did not include any military targets on the program, as Iran has repeatedly stressed that it does not seek to possess a nuclear weapon.
Biden, who was the vice president of the United States, Barack Obama, at the time of the nuclear deal, defeated Trump in the presidential election on November 3.
The Democratic candidate expressed during his election campaign his determination to “change the course” that the Trump administration took with Iran.
Zarif believes that Biden’s desire to return to the agreement is a “very good” thing.
The minister, who has been in office since 2013, stressed that “in the case (Washington) returns to its commitments, what we will do will be quick. This means that we will return to our obligations (…) This matter does not need to be negotiated ”, reiterating that his country“ will not accept any conditions ”.
Returning to the United States is not a priority
According to a report by the International Atomic Energy Organization last week, Iran’s enriched uranium stocks are higher than those allowed by the nuclear deal, either in terms of quantity or degree of enrichment.
Zarif, who led the arduous negotiations on the Iranian side that led to the agreement, presented two separate tracks regarding the lifting of sanctions on the one hand, and Washington’s return to the comprehensive plan of action on the other hand, considering that the second requires “negotiation. “.
He noted that after the lifting of sanctions, “the next step that needs negotiation is the return of the United States to the Joint Comprehensive Plan of Action, and this is not a priority.” The priority is for the United States to stop breaking the law. “
He explained that the United States “is obligated to implement Resolution 2231 as a member of the United Nations and a permanent member of the UN Security Council. In the event that this decision is implemented and sanctions are lifted, and there is no longer an obstacle to Iran’s economic activities, Iran also announced (previously) that it will implement its obligations under the JCPOA.
He stressed that Trump “withdrew from the Joint Comprehensive Plan of Action, but did not withdraw from the United Nations”, and therefore “the commitments of the United States in the Joint Comprehensive Plan of Action are present in their commitments at the United Nations.”
For his part, President Hassan Rouhani suggested that the Biden administration would adopt a different policy than the one followed by the Trump administration.
During a televised address on the sidelines of Wednesday’s weekly cabinet meeting, he expected that “the new US administration will re-establish (abide by) the rules,” which could lead to “a gradual transition from the climate of threats to the climate of opportunity.” .
Relations between Washington and Tehran, cut off for almost four decades, reached stages of severe tension during the Trump era, especially in early 2020 after Washington assassinated the commander of the Quds Force in the Iranian Revolutionary Guard, Major General Qassem Soleimani. , in an airstrike near Baghdad International Airport.
And on Monday, the US newspaper “New York Times” revealed that last week Trump requested the opinions of his advisers on the possibility of “taking action” against an Iranian nuclear site that could be the Natanz facility, during the next few weeks before the end of his term.
He added that those officials, including Secretary of State Mike Pompeo, “convinced the president not to go ahead with a military attack” against Iran, fearing that it would lead to a large-scale conflict (AFP).
