Blinken: New Russia demands on Iran nuclear deal 'irrelevant'
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US Secretary of State Antony Blinken rejects new demands made Saturday by Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov.
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US Secretary of State Antony Blinken
US Secretary of State Antony Blinken dismissed Russian demands for assurances that new sanctions related to Ukraine will not jeopardize Moscow's rights under a reworked Iran nuclear deal on Sunday.
On the CBS talk show "Face the Nation," Blinken said that the sanctions on Russia have nothing to do with the Iran nuclear deal, adding that “they just are not in any way linked together, so I think that's irrelevant."
Blinken’s remarks came in response to Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov who asked the US, on Saturday, to provide written guarantees that sanctions against Russia would not affect the progress with Iran on the revival of the Joint Comprehensive Plan of Action (JCPOA).
Lavrov detailed that the Americans were asked for written guarantees, "At least at the level of the Secretary of State, that the current process launched by the United States will not in any way infringe on our rights for free, full trade and economic, investment, military and technical cooperation with Iran."
The Vienna Talks between Iran and the remaining JCPOA parties began in April on the assumption that the US, under the Joe Biden administration, is willing to reverse the so-called maximum pressure policy pursued by former President Donald Trump against Tehran.
Iran has stated that it will not accept anything less than the complete removal of all US sanctions in a verifiable manner. It also wants assurances that Washington will not withdraw from the agreement again.
