Ali Larijani: The 1+5 Group Has Not Fully Implemented Its Commitments

Ali Larijani, the Speaker of the Islamic Consultative Assembly, stated on Wednesday, March 3, that the 1+5 group has not fully implemented its commitments under the nuclear agreement with Iran. According to Fars News Agency, Mr. Larijani, during a meeting with Lazar Comanescu, the Romanian Foreign Minister, referred to the nuclear agreements made between Iran and the 1+5 group, saying: "It has been a while since the signing of the nuclear agreement, and during this time, Iran has fulfilled all its commitments, but unfortunately, the other side has not fully implemented these commitments." He pointed to the ongoing sanctions in banking transactions, adding: "The prerequisite for economic and trade exchanges between Iran and other countries is the facilitation of transactions and banking matters, which has not yet been achieved satisfactorily, and I hope this problem will be resolved as soon as possible." The nuclear agreement between Iran and the six world powers was reached in July of this year in Vienna, under which Tehran agreed to halt many of its nuclear activities, and these sanctions were lifted after confirmation by the agency, with U.S., EU, and other countries' sanctions against Tehran lifted in January of this year. A day before Ali Larijani's remarks, Ali Akbar Salehi, the head of Iran's Atomic Energy Organization, also reported delays by some major European banks in lifting sanctions against Iran in an interview with the "Al-Arabi Al-Jadid" website. According to Tasnim News Agency, he stated: "So far, some major European banks have not completely lifted their sanctions because they previously committed not to engage in trade with Iran." Mr. Salehi added: "We are still waiting for the Iranian Foreign Ministry to contact the European Union to resolve this crisis. The Atomic Energy delegation is not responsible for this area, but my assessment is that the situation is almost good." He noted that he is still in contact with Ernest Moniz, the U.S. Secretary of Energy, to discuss the mechanisms for implementing this agreement. Ali Akbar Salehi had stated on January 20 in an interview with Iranian state television that if the other parties do not fulfill their commitments regarding the nuclear issue, Iran has a plan that cannot be disclosed. The International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) reported on March 7 in its first report after the implementation of the JCPOA that Iran has complied with its commitments, but its heavy water reserves have been nearly one ton above the allowed limit for some time. According to the nuclear agreement between Iran and the world powers, the Islamic Republic can have a maximum of 130 tons of heavy water in reserve.