Europeans in No Position to Quit JCPOA - Zarif

By Staff, Agencies

Iranian Foreign Minister Mohammad Javad Zarif said the European signatories to a nuclear deal signed between Iran and major world powers in 2015 are legally in no position to withdraw from the accord.

Zarif made the remarks in Tehran on Sunday while addressing an open session of the Iranian Parliament, saying that the three European parties to the nuclear deal, officially known as the Joint Comprehensive Plan of Action [JCPOA], have failed to fulfill their obligations under the pact and even violated it in some cases.

"In addition to the US that blatantly violated the agreement through its withdrawal, the Europeans [Britain, France and Germany] have also put on the same attitude in some cases," Zarif said.

Zarif emphasized that the JCPOA was an international agreement, which has been ratified by the United Nations and has a clear framework, emphasizing, "The US has pulled out of the deal in violation of international regulations."

US President Donald Trump is a stern critic of the nuclear accord, which was clinched by Iran and the five permanent members of the UN Security Council plus Germany. Under the agreement, nuclear-related sanctions against Iran were lifted in exchange for curbs on Tehran's nuclear program.

Trump unilaterally withdrew the US from the deal in May 2018 and unleashed the "toughest ever" sanctions against the Islamic Republic in defiance of global criticism in a bid to strangle the Iranian oil trade.

In response to the White House, Tehran has so far rowed back on its nuclear commitments three times in compliance with Articles 26 and 36 of the JCPOA but stressed that its retaliatory measures will be reversible as soon as Europe finds practical ways to shield the mutual trade from the US sanctions.

The Atomic Energy Organization of Iran [AEOI] said on Sunday that Tehran will continue to further scale back its commitments under the JCPOA if the other signatories fail to keep their side of the bargain.