Cruel sanctions on Iranians will not get US anywhere, says Iranian envoy

Iran’s envoy to the United Nations says the United States’ cruel sanctions against Iranians will not get the US anywhere, pointing out that Washington is still violating the Iran nuclear agreement in spite of the Biden administration’s pro-diplomacy rhetoric.

“US claims the ‘ball is in Iran’s court’,” Ambassador Majid Takht Ravanchi said via Twitter late on Wednesday. “But 2 months into its new admin, US is STILL in violation of JCPOA and UNSCR 2231.”

The remarks came after US Secretary of State Antony Blinken said the path to diplomacy is open with regard to Iran, and claimed that the ball is in Iran’s court when it comes to engaging in a diplomatic path toward reviving the 2015 nuclear deal, officially called the Joint Comprehensive Plan of Action (JCPOA).

“As we’ve said, the ball is really in their court to see if they want to take the path to diplomacy and returning to compliance with the agreement,” Blinken said at a press availability on Wednesday.

More than two months into his presidency, Biden has failed to deliver on his campaign promise of rejoining the nuclear deal and honoring Washington's commitments vis-à-vis the JCPOA, which his predecessor Donald Trump left three years after it was inked with the declared aim of negotiating a “better deal” with the Islamic Republic.

The US withdrawal and imposition of sanctions on Iran prompted Tehran to reduce its nuclear commitments under Article 36 of the JCPOA. 

The US position is backed by Britain, France and Germany, but it has been flatly rejected by Tehran.

“So I had a meeting last night with our E3 partners, with the UK, with Germany, and France. We are all very much on the same page when it comes to Iran, when it comes to our common interest in seeing if Iran wants to engage in diplomacy to come back fully into compliance with its obligations under the JCPOA,” Blinken said.

Takht Ravanchi referred to the Biden administration officials’ criticism of Trump’s “maximum pressure” campaign against Tehran, which included harsh economic sanctions that have negatively impacted the daily lives of Iranian people, saying that the same approach is still in place.

“Biden admin admitted that Trump’s max pressure policy failed; yet that policy is STILL in place,” he said. “Cruel sanctions on Iran’s people won’t get US anywhere.”

US claims the "ball is in Iran's court". But 2 months into its new admin, US is STILL in violation of JCPOA and UNSCR 2231.

Biden admin admitted that Trump's max pressure policy failed; yet that policy is STILL in place.

Cruel sanctions on Iran’s people won't get US anywhere.

— Majid Takht Ravanchi (@TakhtRavanchi) March 24, 2021

Iran’s stance on how to resolve the US-created impasse has been spelled out by Leader of the Islamic Revolution Ayatollah Seyyed Ali Khamenei, who said on Sunday that Washington must first lift all of its sanctions before Tehran returns to full compliance with the deal. The stance has been endorsed and lauded by President Hassan Rouhani and other top Iranian officials.

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