Iranian MP: US must abandon pertinacity in nuclear talks

In an interview with ISNA, Mohammad Hassan Asafari touched on the current stalemate in negotiations between Iran and the Western parties to revive the nuclear deal, also known as the Joint Comprehensive Plan of Action (JCPOA), saying the talks would end in an agreement only when the US lifts sanctions on Iran.

Iran and the P 4+1 group of countries, Russia, China, Britain, France and Germany have held several rounds of talks in Austria and most recently in Qatar in bid to revive the 2015 deal, paving the way for a possible US return to the agreement after Washington unilaterally withdrew from the deal in 2018.

The Iranian MP called on the US to “get off its high horse and realize its past mistakes”, warning insisting on the current path would be a waste of time for all sides.

Asafari denounced the Americans for raising “unfounded allegations” against Iran at the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA)’s Board of Governors.

He stressed that Iran is after a lasting agreement to break the current standoff, but expects its goodwill gestures – by voluntarily rolling back parts of its nuclear activities – be reciprocated, otherwise the Islamic Republic would continue its nuclear activities at full capacity.