In comments at the fourth round of political consultations between Iran and Austria, held via videoconference on Monday, Araqchi decried Europe’s failure to honor commitments under the Joint Comprehensive Plan of Action (JCPOA).
He also warned that any attempt at passing a resolution against Iran in the UN nuclear agency’s Board of Governors would be unconstructive and threaten the atmosphere for diplomacy, specifically after a recent agreement between Iran and the International Atomic Energy Agency.
The deputy foreign minister also made it clear that Iran will fully honor the JCPOA commitments only after the full termination of the illegal and cruel sanctions imposed on the country.
Following a recent visit to Tehran by the IAEA director general, Tehran and the UN nuclear watchdog issued a joint statement, declaring that Iran will stop its voluntary implementation of the Additional Protocol and will deny IAEA inspectors access to its nuclear facilities beyond the Safeguards Agreement as of February 23, 2021 for three months.
According to the Iranian Parliament’s ‘Strategic Action’ on lifting sanctions and safeguarding national interests, ratified in October 2020, Tehran has halted the voluntary implementation of the Additional Protocol because the signatories to the 2015 nuclear deal have failed to honor their commitments.