Iran, Russia and China have called on the West to end “the endless cycle of escalation” and restore the nuclear deal that was agreed with Tehran in 2015.
The three nations issued a joint statement to coincide with a meeting of the Board of Governors of the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA), currently underway in the Austrian capital, Vienna.
Tehran, Moscow and Beijing continue to support the Joint Comprehensive Plan of Action (JPCOA) agreed with Iran in 2015, even though “the US illegally and unilaterally withdrew from this agreement and imposed unilateral and illegal sanctions and applied the policy of maximum pressure against Iran,” read a statement shared by Iranian news agency Tasnim on Wednesday.
The JCPOA, which was signed by Iran, China, France, Germany, Russia, the UK, and the US administration of President Barack Obama, envisaged Tehran scaling down its nuclear program in exchange for the lifting of international restrictions.
However, in 2018, then-US President Donald Trump unilaterally withdrew Washington from the landmark agreement, calling it “the worst deal ever.” The move prompted Iran to renege on some of its commitments under the JCPOA and return to enriching uranium.
In recent years, Iran, Russia and China have taken part in nine meetings in Vienna aimed at reviving the agreement. However, France, Germany, the UK, and the US have chosen a different path, “ignoring the common goal of resuming JCPOA implementation because of their own political considerations,” the statement claimed.
Revising the JCPOA would be a “win-win” for all sides, Iran, Russia, and China argued. Among other things, it would answer most of the questions the international community has regarding “Iran’s peaceful nuclear program” and would provide the IAEA with more extensive tools to monitor and verify Tehran’s activities in the field, they stated.
“It is time for Western countries to show political will, stop the endless cycle of escalation... and take the necessary step to revive the JCPOA,” the statement added. It is still possible to salvage the agreement and Tehran, Moscow, and Beijing are fully prepared to do this, the document stressed.
On Tuesday, the head of the Atomic Energy Organization of Iran, Mohammad Eslami, said the country is “currently in the phase of reduction of commitments” under the JCPOA. Tehran is doing so because the other signatories have failed to fulfill their obligations, he explained.