Comments by US Secretary of State Antony Blinken on Sunday were drawn out as "provocative" by Iran who warned of the consequences as a result.

Blinken claimed in an interview with the Saudi-run Al Arabiya news that Iran rejected the chance last year to revive the 2015 nuclear deal, known as the Joint Comprehensive Plan of Action (JCPOA). He said: “Unfortunately, they rejected what was on the table and had been agreed to by everybody. Their either wouldn’t move forward with it.”

In response, Iran’s Foreign Ministry spokesperson, Nasser Kanaani, stated, “The US administration must be aware of the legal and international responsibilities resulting from threatening remarks against the Islamic Republic of Iran and think twice about the political consequences of such provocative statements."

He added that, as confirmed by the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) multiple times, his country stresses on the peaceful nature of nuclear activities, which further serves as evidence that nuclear weapons are not part of Iran's defense strategy.

On Tuesday, Rafael Grossi, the director of the IAEA, said that he plans to head to Iran next month for "much-needed" talks with Tehran.

"I might be back in Tehran... in February, perhaps, for a much-needed political dialogue, or reestablishment thereof, with Iran," Grossi told lawmakers in the European Parliament. 

Qatar urges return to JCPOA

According to Kanaani, Iran maintains its scientific, technical and technological development in the nuclear field and abides by the nuclear Non-Proliferation Treaty or the NPT. He noted that the US is "well aware" that aggression or interference on its territory is not tolerated and Iran "will respond decisively ... to the aggressors," 

Blinken's comments coincided on the same day that Iranian Foreign Minister Hossein Amir-Abdollahian relayed that his Qatari counterpart Foreign Minister Mohammed bin Abdulrahman bin Jassim Al Thani conveyed messages from the parties to the JCPOA.

In a joint press conference with bin Jassim Al Thani in Iran on Sunday, Amir-Abdollahian said, “Today, we received messages from the JCPOA parties via the Qatari foreign minister."

The Qatari Foreign Minister said on his part that Qatar urges all parties to resume talks, noting that he did convey to Iran the messages of concerned parties, including messages from the US. "It is a good opportunity to resolve the issues related to the nuclear deal and to find suitable conditions to return to the agreement," the Qatari FM said.

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