Zarif reacts to Trump’s JCPOA statement: the deal is non-negotiable

As the US President Donald Trump continues its policy of ambiguity and suspension regarding the Iran nuclear deal, Tehran is showing a firm stance, reiterating the impossibility of any renegotiation of the deal.

کد خبر: ۷۶۴۱۴۲

تاریخ: ۲۳ دی ۱۳۹۶ - ۲۱:۱۸

Tabnak – As the US President Donald Trump continues its policy of ambiguity and suspension regarding the Iran nuclear deal, Tehran is showing a firm stance, reiterating the impossibility of any renegotiation of the deal.

Iranian Foreign Minister Mohammad Javad Zarif has slammed US President Donald Trump's reluctant announcement on Iran's nuclear sanctions waiver as a "desperate attempt" to undermine a "non-negotiable" international deal.

"Trump's policy and today’s announcement amount to desperate attempts to undermine a solid multilateral agreement, maliciously violating its paragraphs 26, 28 and 29," Zarif tweeted on Friday, in reaction to Trump's stance against the nuclear deal, officially known as the Joint Comprehensive Plan of Action (JCPOA).

The "JCPOA is not renegotiable: rather than repeating tired rhetoric, US must bring itself into full compliance -just like Iran," Zarif added.

Meanwhile, Iran’s Foreign Ministry has announced that the country will commit to no obligation beyond those it has already agreed to under the international nuclear deal.

In a statement released on Saturday, the ministry said that US President Donald Trump once again had to extend waivers that are mandatory under the deal, officially called the Joint Comprehensive Plan of Action (JCPOA).

“The internal solidity of and international support for the agreement have blocked attempts by Mr. Trump, the Zionist regime [of Israel], and the ominous alliance of hardline warmongers to terminate this agreement or make changes to it,” the ministry said.

Like the other parties to the JCPOA, the US government must honor its commitments to the deal and stop shirking its responsibility under bogus pretexts, the statement added, holding Washington accountable for the consequences of withdrawal from the agreement.

Earlier in the day, Trump reluctantly agreed not to re-impose nuclear sanctions against Iran for another 120 days, but he cautioned it would be "for the last time."

In conjunction with the waivers, the US Treasury Department placed sanctions on 14 people and entities for alleged offenses unrelated to Iran’s nuclear industry. The entities sanctioned include Iranian Judiciary Chief Ayatollah Sadeq Amoli Larijani.

Trump's statement came a day after the European Union’s foreign policy chief, Federica Mogherini, together with foreign ministers of France, the UK and Germany delivered a strong defense of the deal in separate statements, which were issued following a meeting with Zarif in Brussels.

Since the historic deal was signed in Vienna in July 2015, the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) has repeatedly confirmed the Islamic Republic’s compliance with its commitments under the JCPOA, but some other parties, especially the US, have failed to live up to their undertakings.