Iran implementing commitments under JCPOA: UN watchdog
The United Nations’ nuclear watchdog says Iran is honoring its commitments under the nuclear agreement it reached with world powers in 2015 a day after US President Donald Trump pulled Washington out of the landmark deal in defiance of international warnings.
According to Press TV, the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) issued a statement on Wednesday, reiterating that Iran is in full compliance with the terms of the Joint Comprehensive Plan of Action (JCPOA), a document that came out of years of negotiations between Iran on one the side and six world powers, namely the US, Russia, China, Germany, France, Britain, on the other, in July 2015.
“As of today, the IAEA can confirm that the nuclear-related commitments are being implemented by Iran,” said a statement by Yukiya Amano, director general of the Agency, which is tasked with monitoring the technical aspect of the JCPOA’s implementation.
The announcement came hours after Trump officially declared that his country is pulling out of the JCPOA, saying Washington will not only reinstate the anti-Iran sanctions that were lifted as part of the deal, but will also “be instituting the highest level of economic” bans against the Islamic Republic.
Trump made no mention in his Tuesday announcement about any act by Iran that could be interpreted as a violation of the JCPOA’s terms. He only lashed out at the deal, saying it had “weak” limits on Tehran’s nuclear program.
However, the IAEA statement contradicted Trump’s claim and said, “Iran is subject to the world’s most robust nuclear verification regime under the JCPOA, which is a significant verification gain.”
Amano had said in March that the JCPOA had enabled the body’s inspectors to closely monitor Iran’s nuclear activities.
“Our inspection work has doubled since 2013. IAEA inspectors now spend 3,000 calendar days per year on the ground in Iran,” said Amano back then, adding that JCPOA’s failure “would be a great loss for nuclear verification and for multilateralism.”
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