Tehran (Brussels Morning Newspaper) – The Ministry of Foreign Affairs of Iran said on Saturday that it was no longer bound by constraints on its nuclear program as a 2015 nuclear deal between it and world powers expired. However, Tehran restated its “commitment to diplomacy”.
The Iran nuclear agreement, officially called the Joint Comprehensive Plan of Action (JCPOA), was a significant treaty established between Iran and multiple world powers, including the US, in July 2015.
What does Iran say the deal’s expiration now implies?
Starting now,
“all of the provisions (of the deal), including the restrictions on the Iranian nuclear program and the related mechanisms, are considered terminated”,
the foreign ministry said in a statement on the day of the pact’s expiration. “Iran firmly expresses its commitment to diplomacy,”
it also said.
Iranian Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi stated in a letter to the United Nations on Saturday that the end of the 2015 agreement makes the sanctions “null and void.”
“Iran’s efforts to revive the exchanges (with the IAEA) that led to the agreement in Cairo were also sabotaged by the irresponsible actions of the three European countries,”
the Iranian foreign ministry said in Saturday’s statement, referring to a recent framework to resume cooperation.
What limitations were imposed on Iran under the deal?
Per the terms of the deal, Iran agreed to dismantle most of its nuclear program and authorised rigorous international inspection, in exchange for billions of dollars in sanctions relief.
The deal permitted Iran to enrich uranium to 3.67 per cent in exchange for sanctions relief and mandated strict monitoring of Iran’s nuclear program by the UN’s International Atomic Energy Agency, or IAEA.
Why were UN sanctions on Iran reinstated in September?
According to the IAEA, Iran is the only country without a nuclear weapons program that has enriched uranium to 60 per cent. This level approaches the 90 per cent threshold needed for a bomb and exceeds the levels used for civilian nuclear purposes.
At the behest of France, the UK, and Germany, comprehensive UN sanctions against Iran were reinstated in late September, marking the first such measures in ten years. These countries criticise Iran for its lack of cooperation with the IAEA and urge it to resume negotiations with the United States.
