Europe, US Both Breached Iran Nuclear Deal: Spokesman

Saeed Khatibzadeh told a weekly press briefing Europe is directly responsible for its failure to make good on its obligations under the deal.

“ … Europe along with the US has violated the JCPOA. The United Sates shoulders special responsibilities for the destructive measures it has adopted, but Europe, too, has been an accomplice to the breach of the JCPOA, which can be proven by figures and data,” he said.

“If you consider the volume of Iran-Europe trade before the JCPOA was signed, during the time it was being implemented and after Europe failed to make good on its obligations, it is evident that Europe is directly responsible for its failure to deliver on its commitments under the JCPOA,” the spokesman added.

“Of course, it was said that this is the last chance for Europe. If the Europeans preserve the JCPOA, it will serve their strategic interests,” Khatibzadeh said.

He made it clear that Iran will return to its obligations under the deal as soon as Europe does so.

“We have already said, and we also said it at the [unofficial] meeting [of Europe’s foreign ministers], that whenever the other signatories to the JCPOA live up to their commitments effectively, the Islamic Republic of Iran will roll back all the reversible measures it has adopted, i.e., those five steps that Iran has taken to scale down its commitments, and will stop those measures,” the spokesman underscored.

Khatibzadeh also referred to an unofficial meeting of foreign ministers of countries which are signatories to the JCPOA.
“A decision was made to hold an unofficial meeting of foreign ministers of the remaining state parties to the JCPOA after the regular meeting of the joint commission,” he said.

“As it was an unofficial meeting, the participants mostly reviewed the different developments related to the JCPOA, whether those in Washington or others. They were all developments associated with the JCPOA,” he explained.

“Some of the remaining signatories to the JCPOA expressed their views. Iranian Foreign Minister [Mohammad Javad] Zarif clearly mentioned his points in a tweet, too,” he added.