Zarif Begins Trip to Beijing, Moscow, and Brussels for Talks on JCPOA

Iran's Foreign Minister has traveled to Beijing for discussions with Chinese officials regarding the Joint Comprehensive Plan of Action (JCPOA). He will then proceed to Moscow and Brussels to negotiate with the remaining parties to the JCPOA. Mohammad Javad Zarif left Tehran for Beijing early on Sunday, May 12. According to ISNA news agency, a political and economic delegation, including officials from the Ministry of Oil and the Central Bank of Iran, as well as Majid Takht-Ravanchi, the political deputy to the President of the Islamic Republic, are accompanying Zarif. The Chinese state news agency Xinhua also reported that a 'high-level delegation' is set to accompany the Iranian Foreign Minister in the negotiations in Beijing. After China, Zarif will head to Moscow and Brussels. The Russian state news agency Sputnik quoted the head of the Asia Department of the Russian Foreign Ministry, stating that the Iranian Foreign Minister will arrive in Moscow on Monday morning. The countries that agreed with Iran in July 2015 include China, Russia, France, Germany, the United Kingdom, and the United States. The Trump administration recently exited the agreement after the deadline for implementing Trump's demands and making reforms to the JCPOA expired. The U.S. President had called for reforms to permanently halt Iran's nuclear program, remove time limitations, include extensive inspections, and prevent the development of ballistic missile programs. Tehran rejected renegotiation of the JCPOA. The Islamic Republic asserts that its nuclear program has no military objectives, although some documents indicate military efforts prior to 2003 and the continuation of some until 2009, when, according to the International Atomic Energy Agency, these activities ceased. Other parties to the nuclear agreement, aside from the United States, have emphasized the preservation of the agreement and remain in it. Iranian President Hassan Rouhani instructed his foreign minister on Saturday to explore ways to continue the nuclear agreement through direct dialogue with Russia, China, and European countries.