Iran to Further Reduce JCPOA Commitments If EU Fails to Act: Rouhani

Rouhani made the remark in yet another phone conversation with his French counterpart Emmanuel Macron Saturday evening.

He also stressed that the nuclear deal between Iran and world powers cannot be re-negotiated and all sides must comply with it.

The Iranian President once again reiterated that any further talks depend on the complete removal of anti-Iran sanctions.

Elsewhere in his remarks, Rouhani expressed his gratitude for what he described as France’s concerted efforts in trying to save the accord.

In turn, Macron called for continued negotiations for the resolution of the issues, noting that Paris is following up the political and economic problems with regard to Tehran.

Tehran has already reduced its commitments under the 2015 nuclear agreement in two stages however saying that all the measures are reversible.

The 2015 deal between Iran and six world powers, reached when Trump’s predecessor Barack Obama was in office, was aimed to curb Iran’s disputed uranium enrichment programme in exchange for the lifting of many international sanctions on Tehran.

Since withdrawal from the deal last year, Trump has pursued a policy of “maximum pressure” to try to force the Islamic Republic into broader talks.

While Trump’s European allies also want fresh negotiations with Iran, they believe the nuclear deal must be upheld to help ward off the risk of a wider war in the Middle East. Macron had already met Zarif in Paris before the G7 summit.