Iran: US not upholding ‘spirit’ of nuclear deal

The US is failing to uphold the “spirit” of the 2015 nuclear agreement, protested Iranian Foreign Minister Mohammad Javad Zarif up on arriving in New York for a UN forum today.

With only three days until the US State Department notifies Congress over Iran’s compliance with the Joint Comprehensive Plan of Action (JCPOA), Zarif made pointed remarks about Washington’s failure to abide by the agreement and its foreign policy.

Under US law, the State Department must notify Congress every 90 days of Iran’s compliance with JCPOA. The deadline by which US President Donald Trump will decide if Iran has been compliant is Monday but US officials, according to Reuters, have hinted that he is likely to say Iran is fulfilling its obligations under the deal.

Zarif however seems intent on turning the finger of blame on the Americans. He lashed out at the Americans during an interview with the press upon his arrival in New York. While accusing the US of short sighted policies and a history of interventionism in the region, which he says are the primary cause of terrorism, he criticised the US’ failure to uphold the “spirit” of 2015’s nuclear agreement, by “not allowing Iran to enjoy the full benefits of the nuclear deal.”

Read: Iran complying with nuclear deal

The Iranian official seemed particularly irritated by the fact that measures taken by the US government and the Congress have prevented big banks to revive ties with Iran. The move, he claims, is against the JCPOA which underlines improvement of banking cooperation with the Islamic Republic.

While giving details to reporters about the “remarkable increase” in relations between Iran and the five other countries that are part of the 5+1 group, Zarif was highly critical of the US, commenting that

the nightmare that we are facing in the region is a consequence of many years of intervention and short-sighted policies by the United States in the region which has resulted, as expected, in the exacerbation of extremism and terrorism in our region.

The foreign minister, who is scheduled to speak at a UN meeting, called for Washington to make a record of its own deficiencies under the joint agreement.