Iran hopes Japan & other states work hard to save ‘extremely important’ nuclear deal which US abandoned – Rouhani

Iranian President Hassan Rouhani called on Japan to help salvage the landmark 2015 nuclear deal, which was rendered defunct by the “irrational withdrawal” of the US last year.

The 2015 Joint Comprehensive Plan of Action (JCPOA) on the Iranian nuclear program is “an extremely important agreement” for Tehran, Rouhani said during a meeting with Japanese Prime Minister Shinzo Abe in Tokyo on Friday.

That’s why we strongly condemn the United States’ one-sided and irrational withdrawal [from the deal].

“I hope Japan and other countries in the world will work hard to help keep the nuclear agreement in place,” Rouhani told reporters.

Abe, in turn, urged Iran to play a “constructive” role in the Middle East and fully abide by the nuclear agreement.

The JCPOA placed sweeping restrictions on the Iranian nuclear program in exchange for lifting international sanctions on Iran, and allowed for the nation’s nuclear sites to be inspected by the UN-sponsored watchdog, the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA).

The deal fell apart after US President Donald Trump abandoned the agreement last year and re-imposed several batches of sanctions on Tehran.

Trump cited alleged violations of the agreement by Iran as the reason for withdrawing. Iran denied this accusation, while multiple reports by the IAEA confirmed that the Islamic Republic was complying with the deal. The US leaving the JCPOA was also heavily criticized by the EU, China, and Russia, all of whom are signatories of the agreement.

A year later, Iran began increasing its stockpile of enriched uranium and raised the enrichment level beyond the limits set by the JCPOA. Officials in Tehran said this could be quickly rolled back if the EU convinces the US to rejoin the nuclear deal or find ways to alleviate Iran’s sanctions burden.

Think your friends would be interested? Share this story!