EU Diplomats Support French Initiative On Easing US-Iran Tension - Reports

EU diplomats are backing France's initiative aimed at easing US sanctions against Iran, namely to allow the Islamic Republic to export a part of its oil in exchange for the full compliance with the nuclear deal, The Wall Street Journal (WSJ) reported, citing its sources

MOSCOW (UrduPoint News / Sputnik - 31st August, 2019) EU diplomats are backing France's initiative aimed at easing US sanctions against Iran, namely to allow the Islamic Republic to export a part of its oil in exchange for the full compliance with the nuclear deal, The Wall Street Journal (WSJ) reported, citing its sources.

The plan to reduce tension between Washington and Tehran was announced by French President Emmanuel Macron at a meeting with US President Donald Trump on the sidelines of the G7 summit in French Biarritz earlier in August, the WSJ said on Friday.

Sources told the media outlet that Macron had urged Trump to consider steps that would allow Tehran to increase oil exports, which could finally help Iran's ailing economy. The idea is to let Iran sell at least 700,000 barrels of oil per day, which is almost two times higher than its current oil export.

The second point of this plan is to provide a loan of about $15 billion to Iran, so that the country could use the hard Currency bypassing US sanctions. Officials say Washington can expect more from Iran in exchange for easing sanctions. For instance, Tehran would have to fully adhere to the provisions of the Joint Comprehensive Plan of Action (JCPOA) and make concessions in other spheres, such as reduction of ballistic missiles tests.

At the same time, EU officials note that the current US president is often unpredictable as he faces pressure from some of his advisers and US allies in the region, who oppose any concessions from the US administration toward Iran.

The JCPOA was signed in 2015 by Iran, China, France, Germany, Russia, the United Kingdom, the United States, Germany and the European Union. It required Iran to scale back its nuclear program and severely downgrade its uranium reserves in exchange for sanctions relief. In 2018, the United States abandoned its conciliatory policy on Iran, withdrawing from the JCPOA and hitting Iranian petroleum industries with sanctions, prompting criticism from its allies in Europe.

After the United States' unilateral withdrawal from the pact Tehran began gradually abandoning its JCPOA obligations. In May of this year, Iran warned it would gradually abandon its nuclear commitments every 60 days.