Expect no miracle from un on the JCPOA – German FM

Tabnak – Within the framework of his regional tour to the Middle East, German foreign minister came to Tehran to meet his Iranian counterpart. Issues of JCPOA and regional tensions were top on the agenda of the talks between the two sides.

Germany’s foreign minister arrived in Tehran on Sunday night to hold talks with President Hassan Rouhani and other senior officials on Monday. Heiko Maas’s visit to Tehran is part of a concerted European effort to preserve the 2015 nuclear deal between Tehran and world powers.

Speaking in Tehran on Monday, Maas said his country remains firm in supporting the 2015 nuclear deal but can't pull off "miracles" in the face of US pressures on Iran.

Maas said in Tehran Monday that the UK, France and Germany -- the three European signatories of the Joint Comprehensive Plan of Action (JCPOA) -- planned to preserve the deal a year after the United States pulled out of it.

"The position of our three European countries is that we support the JCPOA and we want to continue our commitments but we can't pull off miracles," he said at a joint news conference with Iranian Foreign Minister Mohammad Javad Zarif.

He noted that Berlin, London and Paris were working to deliver the Instrument in Support of Trade Exchanges (INSTEX), a payment channel they unveiled in January to protect trade with Iran from harsh US economic sanctions.

Maas said America's departure prevented Iran from receiving the full benefits of the agreement but the European Union was doing its utmost to make it up to Tehran.

"Germany still supports the JCPOA and we believe Iran should be able to use its economic advantages," he said. "We want Iran's trade and its economic growth to increase through INSTEX with Europe and it is Iran's right to enjoy the JCPOA's financial benefits."

For his part, Zarif said he had made it clear to Maas in the meeting that implementing the JCPOA was all he expected the Europeans to do.

Referring to calls on Iran by the West to sit down for direct talks with the US, Zarif said Washington's approach to the nuclear deal was proof that there was no point in talks.

"First of all, we have this agreement that is the outcome of two years of compact negations and 12 years of diplomatic work," he noted. "Have they implemented this one that now they expect talks on other issues?"

"They should first show us that negotiations with the US will have a benefit and then ask for talks," he continued. Zarif also rejected US claims that it was destabilizing the region.

The German FM would meet President Hassan Rouhani later in the day before ending his one-day visit.