As the US is expected to hit Iran with new sanctions on Monday, one official in Tehran said European powers need to take outright measures before imposition of the restrictions if they really intend to save the nuclear deal from collapse.
In a talk with Tasnim News Agency, Majid Takht Ravanchi, deputy for political affairs at the president’s office, said the European parties to the Joint Comprehensive Plan of Action (JCPOA) must take clear and outright measures immediately as part of their proposals for securing Iran’s economic interests under the nuclear deal, from which the US government withdrew in May.
Given that the US Treasury Department is going to restore sanctions on a number of key Iranian sectors and activities on August 6, Takht Ravanchi said “any compensatory measure by Europe must take place before the coming US sanctions”.
Stressing the point, he said “Any European action will be irrelevant once the US sanctions come into force and customers refrain from buying Iranian oil.”
***Pointless Moves
The Europeans have been reminded that their efforts after the US sanctions come into effect and any initiative for fresh talks with Iran would be pointless, he added.
The senior official, who was involved in more than two years of nuclear talks with the world powers, stressed that Europe’s failure to neutralize the August 6 US sanctions will be tantamount to “negotiations for the sake of negotiations.”
Expressing dismay at the repeated EU empty talks, he noted, “We will not hold negotiations for [another round of] the sake of negotiations, neither with the Europeans nor with any other side. We want our negotiations to be purposeful and fruitful.”
On Monday, the US Treasury Department is expected to reimpose unilateral sanctions on the purchase or acquisition of US dollar banknotes by Iran, sanctions on Iran’s trade in gold and precious metals and many other sectors.
US President Donald Trump pulled out of the JCPOA in May. The 2015 agreement was signed after marathon negotiations among Iran and the Group 5+1 (Russia, China, the US, Britain, France and Germany).
Following the US exit, the remaining parties to the deal started intensive talks to save the accord.
