Zarif: The U.S. Has Not Respected the Spirit of the JCPOA Due to Incorrect Policies

Iran's Foreign Minister announced that the U.S. has shown 'at least' compliance with the Vienna nuclear agreement but has effectively failed to honor the 'spirit of this agreement' by not allowing Iran to benefit from its 'full advantages.' Mohammad Javad Zarif stated that he has no plans to meet with his American counterpart. He also warned that the United States must reconsider its approach to the JCPOA, 'otherwise it will not help the sustainability of this agreement.' Zarif's comments come in the wake of U.S. President Donald Trump's remarks in May, stating that Iran is not acting in accordance with the spirit of the 'nuclear agreement' with six world powers, and that the U.S. government is closely examining this issue. Trump added, 'They must act according to the spirit of the nuclear agreement. We will see what happens.' On Friday, July 13, Zarif told the IRIB news agency in New York that there was no alternative to the agreement and 'in the end, everyone will see that this agreement will yield the best possible results for all parties.' The Iranian Foreign Minister emphasized that the positions of U.S. officials are 'not in favor of the sustainability' of the Vienna nuclear agreement and that they must 'reconsider' their stance. Previously, Rex Tillerson, the U.S. Secretary of State, criticized the nuclear agreement with Iran, stating that the mistake made during the negotiation of the nuclear agreement was ignoring all serious threats posed by Iran other than the nuclear threat. Some Iranian officials have deemed U.S. actions, including the approval of new sanctions against Iran, as a 'violation' of the Vienna nuclear agreement by the U.S. However, Iranian Foreign Ministry officials, while protesting the new U.S. sanctions, have acknowledged that the new sanctions do not violate the Vienna nuclear agreement and are a continuation of the 'primary' sanctions imposed since the early years after the 1979 revolution. Some of these sanctions have also been imposed against Iran's missile program, which, according to Iranian Foreign Ministry officials, has no connection to the Vienna nuclear agreement. Notably, on Thursday, June 15, the U.S. Senate voted overwhelmingly in favor of a new sanctions bill against the Islamic Republic of Iran, known as the 'Countering Iran's Destabilizing Activities Act.' This bill imposes mandatory sanctions on any individual and entity associated with Iran's ballistic missile program as well as commercial parties involved in this program. This bill will become law after being approved by the House of Representatives and signed by the U.S. President. Ali Akbar Velayati, a member of the JCPOA oversight board, described the U.S. Senate's resolution on Thursday, June 15, as 'contrary to the spirit and letter of the JCPOA' and stated that this board will provide an 'appropriate response' to this action. Meanwhile, Behrouz Kamalvandi, spokesperson for the Iranian Atomic Energy Organization, stated in an interview with the Iranian Students' News Agency (ISNA) published on Friday that these sanctions are 'not only against the spirit of the JCPOA but also against its text and are even a hostile act.' These statements from Iranian officials come as Hamid Baidi-Nejad, Iran's ambassador to London and a former member of the nuclear negotiation team, stated on June 17 that the inconsistency of the U.S. Senate's resolution with the Vienna nuclear agreement 'requires careful expert examination' and should not be reacted to 'hastily.' The Iranian parliament has announced that it will pass a bill to counter the U.S. Senate's resolution, but this bill has not yet been presented in the parliament's public session. The Iranian Parliament's National Security and Foreign Policy Commission reported on Wednesday regarding the implementation of the Vienna nuclear agreement that '238 individuals and entities from Iran remain on the triple sanctions list of the UN Security Council, which will remain on the sanctions list for nearly 7 more years (8 years after the acceptance date of the JCPOA).' The Iranian and American foreign ministers will not meet. The Iranian Foreign Minister also stated that no meeting is planned between him and his American counterpart. In recent years, the Iranian and American foreign ministers have met several times regarding the Vienna nuclear agreement. However, Zarif has not yet met with Rex Tillerson, the Secretary of State under Donald Trump's administration. Mohammad Javad Zarif traveled to New York to participate in the annual political assembly of the United Nations, which is held to discuss sustainable development.