Iraqi: If We Do Not Reach an Agreement with the Europeans, We Will Exit the JCPOA

Abbas Araghchi, Iran's Deputy Foreign Minister, stated that while the Islamic Republic sees the "seriousness" of the Europeans in preserving the JCPOA, it has "doubts" about their "capability" in this regard. Araghchi made these remarks on Sunday night, June 6, during a special news dialogue program on Iran's second television channel. He warned that "if we do not reach a conclusion in the discussions with Europe, we may exit the JCPOA." The Deputy Foreign Minister addressed European countries interested in preserving the JCPOA, such as France, Britain, and Germany, stating that "they must implement the JCPOA as it is. {We} will not step beyond our JCPOA commitments." His remarks come after European countries, while opposing the U.S. withdrawal from the agreement and Washington's stringent economic policies against Iran, have aligned with the United States in criticizing Iran's missile program and what they term "destabilizing actions" in the Middle East. In response to Europe's alignment with the U.S., the Iranian Deputy Foreign Minister stated, "We will not enter into any negotiations or discussions regarding missiles, the region, or the future of the JCPOA." He noted that following the U.S. withdrawal from the JCPOA, "the Europeans asked us to give them a chance to try to secure Iran's interests," adding that this opportunity has been given and Iran is currently negotiating with European countries. Araghchi further stated that the Europeans must "define how they will meet Iran's demands" and "provide Iran with an economic package that offers practical solutions to secure Iran's interests." He divided Europe's problems in this regard into two parts: "political" and "technical," stating that politically, Europe's distance from the U.S. as its strategic partner and its closeness to China and Russia and Iran has made things difficult for them. The close economic relations between these two continents and the "independence" of private companies are also, according to Araghchi, other "challenges" for Europe, and Iran must see if Europe can resolve these "challenges" or not. The Iranian Deputy Foreign Minister also pointed to the dominance of the dollar system in trade, adding that "we see the seriousness of the Europeans in preserving the JCPOA, but we have doubts about their capability." He referenced the conditions set by the Supreme Leader of the Islamic Republic for Iran to remain in the JCPOA, stating that "the Europeans must take action in the Security Council, and this is one of the Leader's conditions. The U.S. is a member of the Security Council, and that the Europeans refer to the Security Council and take action is a condition that must be fulfilled." His reference is to Ayatollah Ali Khamenei's conditions for the Europeans to preserve the JCPOA, which include: "issuing a resolution against the U.S. in the UN Security Council," "not bringing up Iran's missile program and regional actions in negotiations," "ensuring trade with Iran by European banks," "ensuring the full sale of Iranian oil," "compensating for past breaches of commitment," and "countering U.S. sanctions." Araghchi further warned during the special televised dialogue that "if we do not reach a conclusion in the discussions with Europe, we may exit the JCPOA... if we exit the JCPOA, everything will revert to the way it was, and all nuclear restrictions will return to their previous state, and Europe will reinstate its unilateral sanctions, and Security Council sanctions will also return." "Some" are happy due to the problems of some foreign companies investing in Iran, "happily announcing that a certain company has left Iran and thinking that if one company leaves, it will be their turn next." Hassan Rouhani, the President of Iran, stated that Tehran's "ceiling" in negotiations with Europe is "the same few weeks that the President announced, and if there is a discussion of extension, it is a decision of the higher levels of the system." The Deputy Political Minister of Foreign Affairs of Iran had previously stated to reporters that "if we feel that the negotiations are heading towards becoming protracted or wasting time, we will naturally not continue." On Saturday, Mohammad Javad Zarif, Iran's Foreign Minister, stated that the exact implementation of Europe's proposals for Tehran to remain in the JCPOA is still unclear. He had previously deemed Europe's "political" support for the JCPOA as insufficient and called for "practical" action in this regard, likening the JCPOA agreement in a closed session of the Islamic Consultative Assembly to a "dying patient" that is "in the ICU and in very difficult conditions." Iran's requests from Europe come at a time when high-ranking European officials have recently warned about securing the interests and safety of their companies against U.S. sanctions and have explicitly stated that they cannot force these companies to continue economic relations with Iran. Meanwhile, Hassan Rouhani, the President of Iran, on Sunday, in a meeting with a group of economic activists and professors in the field of economics, stated that the active private sector in Iran "neutralizes the U.S. sanctions" because "pressure on our private sector is harder for them than pressure on the public sector." He also criticized that "some" are happy due to the problems of some foreign companies investing in Iran, "happily announcing that a certain company has left Iran and thinking that if one company leaves, it will be their turn next." He stated that we should not "allow the mistakes of 1390 and 1391 in the economy" of the country, which due to sanctions created "rent and corruption," to be "repeated." Rouhani added that in those two years, "instead of appropriately utilizing opportunities, we brought sections and institutions into the economy, thinking that we could solve economic issues with their help." It seems his reference is to the involvement of the Revolutionary Guards in circumventing sanctions and the collaboration of traders such as Babak Zanjani with this military entity to bypass sanctions, who was arrested by the judiciary after Rouhani's government took office in 1392. Zanjani was included in the sanctions list of this union due to what was declared as "helping to circumvent Iran's sanctions through having a key role in Iran's oil trade and transferring oil money to Iran."