EU reiterates commitment to Iran deal amid US threat to scrap it

The EU foreign policy chief has reaffirmed the bloc’s commitment to the 2015 international nuclear agreement between Iran and six other countries in the face of the belligerent US rhetoric against the accord.

“At a time of acute nuclear threats the European Union is determined to preserve the JCPOA as a key pillar of the international non-proliferation architecture," Federica Mogherini said in Luxembourg on Thursday, Press TV reported.

The JCPOA stands for the Joint Comprehensive Plan of Action, as the nuclear deal reached between Iran and the US, Russia, China, France, Britain, and Germany is officially called.

She also described the agreement as “the culmination of 12 years of diplomacy facilitated by the European Union” and endorsed by United Nations Security Council Resolution 2231.

“The European Union is committed to the continued full and effective implementation of all parts of the JCPOA. The European Union underlines that the lifting of nuclear related sanctions has a positive impact on trade and economic relations with Iran,” she added.

Elsewhere in her comments, Mogherini said the EU “encourages” Washington to maintain its commitment to the JCPOA.

Russia supports JCPOA

Separately on Thursday, Iranian Deputy Foreign Minister Abbas Araqchi met with his Russian counterpart Sergei Ryabkov in Moscow.

During the meeting, Ryabkov said Moscow remains committed to the Iran nuclear deal, according to a statement by Russia’s Foreign Ministry.

He also stressed that Moscow and Tehran could not be indifferent to the “irresponsible” US stance on the JCPOA, IRNA reported.

The Iranian official, for his part, said the JCPOA is not a bilateral agreement between Iran and the US, but rather an international document that is endorsed by the UN Security Council.

“We should not allow a country to make decision for the world and I think that Russia and Iran share a common stance on this issue,” Araqchi pointed out.

SS