No Retreat from Red Lines in Nuclear Talks: Iranian President
TEHRAN (Tasnim) – President of Iran Ebrahim Raisi gave an assurance that Tehran would by no means compromise on its red lines in the nuclear talks on reviving the 2015 nuclear deal and lifting the sanctions.
In an address to the opening of a seasonal meeting of the Assembly of Experts on Tuesday, Raisi expounded on his administration’s strategy in the course of the Vienna negotiations on the revival of the Joint Comprehensive Plan of Action (JCPOA).
“In the first step, the administration seriously pursued neutralization of the sanctions, and in the second step, it is after the removal of the sanctions in quite dignified negotiations,” he explained.
Highlighting the administration’s compliance with the principles and frameworks defined by Leader of the Islamic Revolution Ayatollah Seyed Ali Khamenei in the nuclear talks, Raisi said Iran has not retreated from any of the red lines that have been announced, and will not do so either.
He further dismissed the accusations that his administration is inclined towards the East, saying Iran seeks the expansion of relations with all countries and creation of balance in the foreign policy, a sign of which is the remarkable increase in the trade exchanges with neighbors.
In comments on Friday, Iranian Foreign Minister Hossein Amirabdollahian underlined that the West's haste to reach an agreement through the Vienna talks will not make Tehran to ignore its red lines.
The Vienna discussions between Iran and the other parties to the Iran deal began in April on the assumption that the US, under the administration of Joe Biden, would be willing to rejoin the JCPOA.
Former US President Donald Trump abandoned the JCPOA in May 2018 in pursuit of illegal "maximum pressure" sanctions against Iran.
