Iranian Deputy Foreign Minister Says Tehran Willing To Further Cooperate With IAEA

Iran will continue to cooperate with the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) on a number of issues including the Joint Comprehensive Plan of Action (JCPOA), the Iranian Deputy Foreign Minister and the country's top negotiator on the deal, Ali Baqeri, said on Tuesday

MOSCOW (UrduPoint News / Sputnik - 03rd January, 2023) Iran will continue to cooperate with the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) on a number of issues including the Joint Comprehensive Plan of Action (JCPOA), the Iranian Deputy Foreign Minister and the country's top negotiator on the deal, Ali Baqeri, said on Tuesday.

"As an effective and responsible member of the Agency and the nuclear Non-Proliferation Treaty, and as a country possessing nuclear capabilities, nuclear knowledge, and nuclear technology, the Islamic Republic of Iran has always cooperated seriously and effectively with the Agency and will definitely keep up that cooperation," Baqeri said, as quoted by the Tasnim news agency.

The senior diplomat also criticized the US for changing position regarding the JCPOA, saying that lasting cooperation on the issue is needed.

"The (JCPOA revival) negotiations constitute a continuous process, which has been ongoing.

Its methods may have changed, but the process still continues," Baqeri added.

The nuclear deal was sealed in 2015 by China, France, Germany, Iran, Russia, the United Kingdom, and the United States, as well as the European Union. The US unilaterally withdrew in 2018 and reimposed sanctions on Iran, to which the latter responded by gradually dropping its own obligations under the deal. The two started talks on JCPOA revival after the change of power in the White House.

Vienna has hosted several rounds of talks since April 2021. In December 2021, the JCPOA parties agreed on two drafts of a new deal, but no definitive agreement has been reached. Since then, the parties have had several rounds of talks to revive the deal.

Last week, Iranian Foreign Ministry spokesman Nasser Kanaani said that the text of the revived deal is ready for signing, but Washington's "procrastination" is stopping the deal from being concluded.