Details of Iran’s Letter to Mogherini on JCPOA Released
TEHRAN (Tasnim) – The details of a letter that Iranian Foreign Minister Mohammad Javad Zarif has sent to EU Foreign Policy Chief Federica Mogherini about Tehran’s new step in reducing commitments to the 2015 nuclear deal have been released.
In a statement on Thursday, Iran’s Foreign Ministry Spokesman Abbas Mousavi provided details of a letter that Zarif has sent to Mogherini on September 5 to inform the High Representative of the European Union for Foreign Affairs and Security Policy about Tehran’s third step to reduce commitments to the Joint Comprehensive Plan of Action (JCPOA).
In the letter, Foreign Minister Zarif made it clear that the Islamic Republic of Iran has suspended all of its commitments regarding the nuclear research and development under the JCPOA as of Thursday, because of the consequences of the US withdrawal from the JCPOA, the re-imposition of US sanctions on Iran, and the failure of the three EU parties to fulfill their commitments stipulated by the JCPOA and by the JCPOA Joint Commission’s statements, Mousavi added.
“The letter has emphasized that the measure (third step) is being taken in complete accordance with Iran’s rights under the JCPOA, particularly with its Article 36, and in response to the widespread and constant violation of the JCPOA over the past 16 months. The technical and operational details of suspension of Iran’s commitments regarding nuclear research and development will be reported to the International Atomic Energy Agency subsequently,” the spokesman noted.
The letter has made it clear at the end that Iran is ready to continue negotiations with the remaining parties to the JCPOA in order to prove its goodwill, and that Tehran will resume honoring the JCPOA in full if the other parties fulfill theirs completely as well, Mousavi concluded.
Tehran has scaled back its nuclear commitments twice in compliance with articles 26 and 36 of the 2015 deal, after the US scrapped the agreement in May 2018 and the European parties (the UK, France, and Germany) failed to ensure Iran’s economic interests.
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 JCPOA.
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, US President Donald Trump pulled his country out of the nuclear accord.
Following the US withdrawal, Iran and the remaining parties launched talks to save the deal.
However, the EU’s failure to ensure Iran’s economic interests forced Tehran to stop honoring certain commitments, including an unlimited rise in the stockpile of enriched uranium.
