Iran: US 'remains in exactly same position' held by Trump

Iran has once again stressed that it is the US that should take the first step in order to resolve the issues surrounding the 2015 nuclear deal, urging Washington to stop “spouting off” amid growing inconsistencies on the American side.

“It’s impossible [for Iran] to take the initiative to make concessions,” Iranian Foreign Minister Mohammad Javad Zarif said in an interview with China’s Phoenix Television broadcast on Wednesday.

Zarif was reaffirming Iran’s position on the nuclear deal, also known as the Joint Comprehensive Plan of Action (JCPOA), which was abandoned in May 2018 by former US president Donald Trump, in pursuit of what he called the “maximum pressure” policy on Iran.

Trump’s withdrawal from the JCPOA has been strongly criticized by the US Democrats, including President Joe Biden, who prior to the November presidential election promised to re-enter the deal but has so far reneged on his promise.  

“I feel that the Americans have not yet decided on their policies. That’s why the White House had to correct Mr. Biden’s remarks many times,” said Zarif, a week after Biden said in an interview with CBS that he would not lift sanctions in order to encourage Iran to return to the negotiating table.

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In similar remarks in a tweet on Thursday, Zarif said Biden’s America remains in exactly the same position as Trump’s America. He also urged the US to comply with the deal instead of “spouting off”.

Biden administration officials keep talking about Iran’s compliance with JCPOA

In what capacity?

U.S. ceased participation in May 2018, violated JCPOA & punished those complying with UN resolution.

As of today, US remains in EXACTLY same position.

Before spouting off, COMPLY.

— Javad Zarif (@JZarif) February 11, 2021

Following the US pullout from the JCPOA, Iran waited a whole year for the other parties to the deal – namely the UK, Britain, Germany, Russia and China – to protect its interests as promised in the historic agreement. But as they failed to do so, Iran began to scale down its commitments under the deal in May 2019.

However, Tehran has repeatedly insisted that it will return to full compliance once the other parties, especially the US, honor their commitments.

Elsewhere in the interview, Zarif said it is patently obvious that Washington is violating international rules.

“It is obvious who should abandon such policies, which are in violation of international rules, and lift all these sanctions,” he added.

Referring to Biden’s criticism of Trump’s withdrawal, the foreign minister said Biden has a clear option of abandoning his predecessor’s Iran policy and doing away with the sanctions.

Therefore, he continued, there is no necessity for Iran to take the initiative in returning to full compliance with the deal.

Zarif then clarified his recent remarks on the role EU foreign policy chief Josep Borrell can play in order to save the JCPOA.

He said while the US should take action to remove sanctions, it should also be reassured that Iran would return to compliance with the JCPOA. “And for that to take place, we have a mechanism in the JCPOA called the Joint Commission, which has a chairman called Mr. Borrell, and Mr. Borrell can do this.”

In an interview with CNN’s Christiane Amanpour earlier this month, Zarif said Borrell could prevent the issue from reaching an impasse by coordinating a synchronized US return into the nuclear pact and Tehran’s full compliance with it.

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Iran says time is running out for the US to revive the 2015 nuclear deal and rectify its past mistakes.

During his Wednesday interview, the top Iranian diplomat said Iran is currently waiting to see whether the new US administration would return to the JCPOA, noting that, “This would be a test for the Americans.”

“When we see the result of the test, any administration that would be in power at the time, would decide how to proceed,” he said.

“So far, we have heard nothing but words, and not all the words have been positive,” Zarif remarked.

The foreign minister stressed that whenever all of Iran’s blocked assets in the world, including money for food and medicine for Iranian people, are unblocked, the country would see that as a goodwill gesture from the the US side.

“If the US shows such goodwill, the response to it will definitely be goodwill as well,” he added.

Biden continuing Trumpism in foreign policy

Hossein Dehqan, a military advisor to Leader of the Islamic Revolution Ayatollah Seyyed Ali Khamenei, said Thursday that the policies adopted by the Biden administration are the same as those pursued under Trump.

“The Biden administration talked about diplomacy, multilateralism and interaction in the international arena as well as returning to its international commitments,” Dehqan said in an interview with The Guardian.

He said, however, the Biden administration has not lifted the oppressive sanctions against Iranian people, while continuing to block Iran’s oil revenue in foreign banks despite Iran’s dire need for that money to fight against the coronavirus outbreak.

“Altogether this means the continuation of Trumpism in international relations,” he added.

Press TV’s website can also be accessed at the following alternate addresses:

www.presstv.co.uk