Teheran urges Washington to prove reliability in talks

TEHERAN－To rejoin the Iran nuclear deal, the United States must prove it is reliable and show that it abides by the international norms, said Iranian Foreign Ministry spokesman Nasser Kanaani on Monday.

"The country, which unilaterally withdrew from the agreement signed in 2015, has hindered the achievement of an agreement based on joint interests ... has imposed illegal, unilateral and irrational sanctions (on Iran), and has no right to be a claimant and take a creditor's pose," Kanaani told reporters during his weekly news conference.

"The US government needs to take a constructive approach to reaching an agreement."

In its recent response to the European Union's proposal on restoring the 2015 nuclear deal, formally known as the Joint Comprehensive Plan of Action, Iran has not raised any new issues or "any serious demands" that would hinder the achievement of a possible agreement, Kanaani said.

European trio criticized

The recent statement of the European trio of France, Germany and Britain about Iran's response to an EU nuclear proposal was "wrong" and "untimely", Kanaani said.

On Saturday, France, Germany and Britain said in a joint statement that Iran "has chosen not to seize this critical diplomatic opportunity "given by a recent EU-submitted "final set of texts" to rescue the JCPOA, voicing their "serious doubts as to Iran's intentions and commitment to a successful outcome on the JCPOA".

It is regretful that the European trio has been influenced by a country that is not a member of any safeguards systems of the IAEA, instead of responding positively to the "constructive" actions of Iran in the course of reaching an agreement and its cooperation with the IAEA, said the spokesman.

Kanaani urged the International Atomic Energy Agency to fulfill its duties professionally and avoid the impact of pressures from third parties, particularly from Israel.

Iran signed the JCPOA with world major powers in July 2015, agreeing to curb its nuclear program in return for removing sanctions on the country. However, former US president Donald Trump pulled Washington out of the agreement and reimposed unilateral sanctions on Teheran, prompting the latter to drop some of its commitments under the pact.

Talks on the JCPOA's revival began in April last year in Vienna, but were suspended in March this year because of political differences between Teheran and Washington. The latest round of talks was held in the Austrian capital in early August after a five-month hiatus.

Xinhua - Agencies