Iran Slams Macron’s Comments on New Nuclear Deal

In a statement released on Saturday, Foreign Ministry Spokesperson Saeed Khatibzadeh responded to the recent comments by the French president, calling on Emmanuel Macron to exercise self-restraint and refrain from hasty and ill-advised stances.

“The JCPOA is a multilateral international agreement that has been endorsed and stabilized by the (UN) Security Council Resolution 2231. It is by no means re-negotiable, and its parties are also definite and unchangeable,” he added.

Pointing to the US’ withdrawal from the nuclear deal and Europe’s failure to maintain it, the Iranian spokesman said, “If there is any willingness to revive and save the JCPOA, the solution is easy. The US should return to the JCPOA and lift the whole JCPOA and non-JCPOA sanctions that have been imposed (on Iran) during the tenure of the previous president of that country (the US).”

“If the French officials are worried about the huge arms sales to the Persian Gulf Arab states, they had better revise their policies,” Khatibzadeh added.

“The French arms, along with other Western weapons, have not only massacred and killed thousands of Yemenis, but are also the main reason behind instability in the Persian Gulf region,” he stated.

“Without a halt to the flood of arms exports from France, the UK, the US and others, one cannot expect stability and calm in this delicate region,” the Iranian spokesperson added.

His comments came after French President Macron on Friday called for talks on a new deal with Iran which he said needs to involve countries in the region, including Saudi Arabia.

“Dialogue with Iran will be rigorous, and they will need to include our allies in the region for a nuclear deal, and this includes Saudi Arabia,” Macron said in Paris, noting that it was necessary to refrain from making the same mistakes made in 2015 nuclear deal.