If E.U. countries take Iran's nuclear case back to the U.N. Security Council, Tehran will withdraw from the Joint Comprehensive Plan of Action (JCPOA), or its nuclear deal with world powers, the spokesman of Iran's Atomic Energy Organization (IAEO) has warned.
Speaking to the state-run English language channel, Press T.V., May 14 Behrouz Kamalvandi warned that Iran might also take further "drastic and major steps" in tandem with dropping JCPOA.
Earlier, several Persian language websites, including Zaytoon, had reported that in a confidential session attended by local media managers, the Deputy Foreign Minister, Abbas Araghchi (Araqchi), has said that if Tehran's nuclear case is referred to the Security Council, and a resolution against the Islamic Republic issued, Iran would withdraw from NPT.
Without going into details, Kamalvandi maintained, "We cannot exclude any measure --- We have so far talked about different measures. It could be leaving the JCPOA, and it could be other actions [such as] leaving the NPT (Non-Proliferation Treaty) or others. It is for the senior officials of the country to decide."
Kamalvandi reiterated that if Europeans (France, Germany, and the U.K.) take Iran's case back to the Security Council, they will ruin the deal ... and the agreement will not be alive anymore."
In his interview with Press TV, Kamalvandi asserted that if Europe takes no steps toward saving JCPOA, Iran will raise its level of uranium enrichment to more than 3.6% and "will make a decision" about its heavy water reactor in Arak.
"We are waiting for practical steps by Europeans, and after sixty days, we will decide whether or not to end our other voluntary commitments," Kamalvandi noted.
On May 8, Iran announced it will suspend some of its obligations related to the JCPOA, pending steps by other signatories of the agreement to fully abide by it. This mainly refers to Iran's demands that Europe should facilitate trade despite U.S. sanctions.
"INSTEX has not worked properly so far --- We think they [Europeans] are willing to do something but are not able to take practical and major steps --- we have given them time to deal with this problem and take major steps," the Islamic Revolution Guards Corps (IRGC)-run Tasnim news agency cited the nuclear official as saying.
Three European states party to JCPOA, Germany, France and the U.K., have set up INSTEX (Instrument in Support of Trade Exchanges) to help Tehran with limited trade despite U.S. sanctions.
"The main objective of the JCPOA was the removal of sanctions against Iran in a bid to help the country avail itself of the benefits of the deal; however, the restrictive measures are still in place despite Tehran's full compliance, and the goal has not been realized so far," Kamalvandi lamented.
Based on JCPOA, Iran has voluntarily accepted to implement NPT's Additional Protocol, which allows the International Atomic Energy Organization's inspectors to visit Iran's nuclear facilities without prior notice and at any time they wish.
