Current JCPOA status due to US policies, miscalculations: Iran Envoy
5 Min Read
The Permanent Representative of Iran to International Organizations in Vienna says Iran prioritizes dialogue and diplomacy in narrowing differences.
-
Permanent Representative of Iran to International Organizations in Vienna Mohsen Naziri Asl (AFP)
The current status of the Joint Comprehensive Plan of Action (JCPOA), also known as the Iranian nuclear deal, is the result of US policies and miscalculations, but there is a chance to resolve the latest issues, Permanent Representative of Iran to International Organizations in Vienna Mohsen Naziri Asl pointed out.
"The current status of the JCPOA is the product of US policies and miscalculations. Our past experience has taught us to become engaged in the new round of negotiations with more care and sensitivity. The few remaining issues from the last round of negotiations could be addressed," Naziri Asl told Sputnik.
Talks to resume the JCPOA with Iran began in December 2021. Their main goal is to restore the deal and lift the sanctions previously imposed on Tehran by the United States after Washington's withdrawal from the JCPOA in 2018.
However, progress on the deal was frozen by September 2022 amid a series of mass protests in Iran, for which Tehran blamed the US and other Western countries.
Read more: Returning to nuclear talks now 'difficult': German envoy - Exclusive
Naziri Asl considered that the final steps in the negotiations to resume the JCPOA can be taken without preconditions, stressing that the US needs to have the will and strength to complete these talks.
"Without any preconditions and through the good will and determination of all parties, and within the framework of the negotiations held until now, the final steps of the talks can be taken," the Iranian diplomat said.
He underlined that "Iran continuously expressed its readiness to continue negotiations until the conclusion of the agreement."
Read more: Iran FM blames Washington for JCPOA stalemate
Iran prioritizes dialogue in crises resolution
In a separate context, Naziri Asl said Iran condemns warmongering and the imposition of unilateral sanctions and gives priority to dialogue and diplomacy in narrowing differences between parties to a conflict, including that in Ukraine.
"The principle position of the Islamic Republic of Iran as a victim of imposed war, threat and unilateral sanctions by the United States and the West, is respect for the Charter of the United Nations and international law, including non-use of force or threat to force, territorial integrity and sovereign equality," he told Sputnik.
The Iranian official said his country "denounces war and unilateral sanctions and its absolute preference is for dialogue and diplomacy in dispute settlement between states."
Tehran also condemns the Cold War era "hegemonic mentality and unilateralism" by the United States and other Western nations through national policies and regional arrangements such as NATO, Naziri Asl added, noting that this mentality was "one of the main root causes of many crises in the world, including the ongoing one in Ukraine."
"After more than one year of military conflict in Ukraine, which has caused human and material losses to the parties to the conflict and has had harmful consequences for the world, the international community needs to reinforce its efforts on an immediate peaceful settlement of this crisis through diplomacy," Iran's Permanent Representative to International Organizations in Vienna pointed out.
He underlined that it was high time for "genuine diplomacy" activation to put an end to the Ukraine conflict and unilateral sanctions and stop "advertising and fueling the war."
Elsewhere, Naziri Asl said Iran had announced its readiness to contribute to the peaceful settlement of the crisis and also supported China's peace plan for Ukraine released on February 24.
Read more: US unilateral actions threatening multilateralism: Iran UN envoy
In the same context, Iran’s Defense Minister Brigadier General Mohammad Reza Ashtiani considered that the US and some Western countries are seeking a war of attrition in Ukraine by continuing to provide military aid to the country.
In a meeting with his Belarusian counterpart Viktor Khrenin, Ashtiani reiterated that Iran supports any diplomatic effort that leads to a peaceful solution to the conflict in Ukraine.
It is noteworthy that after the beginning of the Ukraine war, the West imposed comprehensive sanctions against Moscow while also ramping up its military support for Kiev. The European Union, in particular, has imposed 10 packages of anti-Russia sanctions.
On February 24, one year after the start of the war, China released a 12-point document entitled "China's Position on the Political Settlement of the Ukraine Crisis," which underscores respect for the sovereignty of all countries, the cessation of hostilities, and the resumption of peace talks between Moscow and Kiev.
Russian President Vladimir Putin said some of the provisions of the plan could be a basis for a peace settlement, "if the West and Kiev are ready for it."
