Tehran warns Europe of ‘unexpected’ step if JCPOA commitments not met

Iran’s Foreign Ministry spokesperson Seyyed Abbas Mousavi said that Tehran’s next step will be “stronger” and “unexpected”, if Europe fails to stick to its Iran nuclear deal commitments, speaking at a press conference in Tehran on Monday.

Mousavi also commented the possibility of negotiations on the deal, especially with the US, which withdrew from it last year imposing sanctions on Iran.

“Negotiation does not mean that we accept a commitment, but negotiation is about how they can convince Iran to stay in the Joint Comprehensive Plan of Action (JCPOA) and return to its previous condition. It depends on the US itself and the way it behaves, we are not rolling out the red carpet for Americans, but if it returns to its commitments, it will be considered a positive step,” stressed the spokesperson.

Iran announced in May that it would partially withdraw from the nuclear deal, or Joint Comprehensive Plan of Action (JCPOA), signed with the United States and the EU in 2015, from which the Trump administration withdrew in May 2018, re-imposing sanctions on Iran. Tehran asked of the European countries still in the deal, France, Germany and the UK, to find solutions to counteract the new US sanctions.