Meeting of Foreign Ministers of the Five JCPOA Member Countries with Iran

The meeting of the foreign ministers of the four permanent members of the UN Security Council (France, Russia, China, and the UK) along with Germany and with the presence of Federica Mogherini, the EU's foreign policy chief, with Iran regarding the nuclear agreement known as the JCPOA was held on Monday, October 2nd. A joint statement is expected to be read at the end of this meeting. According to Reuters, Ms. Mogherini stated before the meeting that Iran has many reasons to remain in the nuclear agreement despite the US withdrawal, and the remaining countries in this agreement are looking for ways to mitigate the impact of the return of US sanctions during the meeting on Monday. Donald Trump, the President of the United States, announced on May 8th the US decision to withdraw from the JCPOA and stated that sanctions against Iran would be reinstated. So far, one phase of the US sanctions has been implemented, and the second phase, which includes oil sanctions, is set to be enforced from November 4th. Ms. Mogherini also stated that a significant part of the agreement (JCPOA) and its implementation is based on Iran's ability to benefit from the lifting of sanctions. This is exactly what we will discuss and negotiate tonight; the operational steps we can take. She added that Iran has good arguments and reasons to remain in this agreement. The more operational decisions we make, the more reasons Iran will have to implement the agreement, in my opinion. Reuters reports that despite Ms. Mogherini's statements, the EU has so far been unable to establish a legal framework to protect companies that engage economically with Iran. This comes as US oil sanctions are set to be enforced next month, and US officials state that the goal of these sanctions is to reduce Iran's oil exports to zero. According to this report, the remaining countries in the JCPOA have a sensitive task ahead as they must encourage Iran to remain committed to this agreement despite the US withdrawal and the return of sanctions and deprivation of the economic benefits of the nuclear agreement. The six world powers reached the JCPOA in 2015 to resolve the Iranian nuclear dispute. Iran, while limiting some of its nuclear activities, allowed international inspectors access to its nuclear facilities, and in return, the international community lifted nuclear sanctions against Iran. Meanwhile, Donald Trump claims that the JCPOA is a flawed and incomplete agreement and does not include Iran's missile program and regional activities.