Austria: Iran deal will stand without US

Austria’s permanent representative to the United Nations (UN) says the Iran nuclear deal will continue to stand even if the United States, which is a party to the agreement, withdraws from it.

In an exclusive interview with Iran’s IRNA news agency, which was published on Tuesday, Jan Kickert denounced as “wrong and unjustifiable” a possible move by the current US administration to “decertify” Iran’s compliance with the deal, officially called the Joint Comprehensive Plan of Action (JCPOA).

Kickret said Austria believed that the Islamic Republic has lived up to its commitments under the JCPOA, adding that when one side continues to abide by an agreement, the other sides should do, too.

The International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA), the official institution tasked with certifying Iranian compliance, has repeatedly confirmed that Iran is adhering to its obligations under the deal.

“If the US decides to impose new sanctions against Iran, this move will not only be regarded as a violation of the spirit of the JCPOA but also a flagrant violation of the letter of this agreement,” Kickret said.

He also hoped that the US’s potential re-imposition of sanctions would not disappoint Iran and that the Islamic Republic would continue to remain in the deal. European countries and Russia and China will, he said.
“In case Iran remains a party to the deal,” the Austrian diplomat said, “European countries will do that, too, and the agreement will continue to stand.”

The European parties to the deal and Russia and China have long expressed firm support for the deal.

EA