Iranian FM says European trigger of dispute mechanism 'legally baseless'

TEHRAN - Iranian Foreign Minister Mohammad Javad Zarif said the move by Britain, France and Germany (E3) to trigger dispute resolution mechanism in the 2015 nuclear deal with Iran is "legally baseless", Tasnim news agency reported on Wednesday.

Zarif criticized what he called the Europeans' failure to honor their commitments to pertaining to the Iranian nuclear deal, also known as the Joint Comprehensive Plan of Action (JCPOA).

He also slammed E3's move to trigger the dispute resolution mechanism as "baseless in legal terms and a strategic mistake in political terms."

Zarif made the remarks in India's New Delhi where he traveled to attend the Raisina Dialogue 2020.

On Tuesday, the Europeans said that they have taken the step in response as Tehran has backed off nuclear commitments over the past months.

Iran, however, had said that its withdrawal from practical commitments under the JCPOA is a reaction to the U.S. exit from the deal in May 2018 and the subsequent sanctions, and it is also a response to the Europe's sluggishness in facilitating Iran's banking transactions and its oil exports.

Iran also had said that the cut of obligations under the 2015 nuclear deal was a "wake-up call" for the remaining parties of the deal to protect Iran's economic interests.