Response to Khamenei: The Issue in the JCPOA is Not Trust, but the Possibility of Verification

The spokesperson for the U.S. State Department emphasized that in the matter of the nuclear agreement with Iran, the issue has never been solely about trust, but rather the main issue is the possibility of verifying Iran's compliance with the commitments made under this agreement. John Kirby's remarks, published on Tuesday, August 2, on the U.S. State Department's website, are a reaction to the statements made by Ayatollah Ali Khamenei, the leader of the Islamic Republic, who once again accused the U.S. of 'breach of trust' regarding the JCPOA and urged Iranian officials not to trust Washington. Mr. Kirby, speaking at a press conference, responded to reporters regarding Khamenei's statements, stating that the U.S. does not intend to respond to all the opinions of Iranian officials, but rather focuses on assessing its own performance and that of Iran to determine whether both parties have adhered to their commitments under the nuclear agreement. He added, 'We intend to continue to adhere to our commitments under the agreement, as we believe this agreement is very important and has an impact on establishing stability in the region and the world. Therefore, the U.S. Secretary of State is focused on ensuring that we continue to comply with the agreement and also to ensure that Iran adheres to its commitments.' Khamenei recently criticized the U.S. again, stating that the Vienna nuclear agreement 'proved the futility of negotiating with the Americans, their breach of trust, and the necessity of distrust in America's promises.' He accused the U.S. of not allowing the lifting of sanctions against Iran despite the nuclear agreement. However, Washington has consistently denied this accusation, asserting that it has acted even beyond its commitments. In this context, Kamalvandi stated: 'The U.S. and two other countries have been involved in disclosing confidential nuclear information.' Rouhani remarked: 'During the sanctions, we reached out to others.' Hassan Rouhani added: 'If the U.S. had goodwill in implementing the JCPOA, we would have negotiated on other issues.'