“Russia fully understands that Tehran’s actions are of a forced, sporadic, and, most importantly, reversible nature. We understand and in many ways share the disappointment of the Iranian side in relation to the lack of an adequate response to its urgent requests to take into account Tehran’s concerns regarding the stalling of the JCPOA in terms of the practical impact of the nuclear deal,” Tass quoted Ryabkov as saying.

“Iran is honoring all its obligations and even today, it technically remains within the framework set by the JCPOA. Russia consistently stresses the necessity of a responsible approach to the implementation of obligations by all parties to the nuclear deal.”

He also noted the statements of various US officials who claim that Iran threatens the comprehensive agreements on the Iranian nuclear deal, the norms of international law and “even nearly attempts nuclear blackmail.”

“The fact that Washington has remembered the existence of the norms of international law is a welcome development. Now we need to see who exactly is in violation of them. It is clear to us that the US colleagues themselves have dealt a devastating blow to one of the most significant diplomatic achievements, renouncing all their obligations under the INF [Intermediate-Range Nuclear Forces] Treaty in May 2018 in violation of the UN Security Council Resolution 2231 and Article 25 of the UN Charter, which states that all member states must comply with the decisions of the Security Council,” the deputy foreign minister said. “By doing this, the US has placed itself outside of the international community, virtually ignoring international law, which they are so keen on protecting right now,” he added.

Threat of US sanctions

Washington’s threats of sanctions regarding the implementation of the UN Security Council Resolution on the Joint Comprehensive Plan of Action (JCPOA) on the Iranian nuclear deal contradict logic, Ryabkov added.

“In accordance with international law, the US must immediately return to the implementation of all obligations under the JCPOA and the UN Security Council Resolution 2231, lifting all sanctions against Iran restored since May 2018 and ceasing to create obstacles to the systematic implementation of agreements by all other states,” the senior diplomat stressed. “The threats by the US to introduce sanctions in response to the implementation of the UN Security Council decisions are obviously lacking common sense.” “We urge the American colleagues to consider which country’s actions can be defined as ‘blackmail’,” he continued.

Avoiding confrontation

Russia calls on all sides of the JCPOA to refrain from taking steps aimed at complicating the situation further, the Russian diplomat stated.

“We call on all involved parties, including Iran, to refrain from steps aimed at complicating the situation further and to provide a possibility to find the solutions that will help stabilize the implementation of the JCPOA,” Ryabkov stressed. “There is no need to test the agreements. The world will not become a safer place if the JCPOA ceases to exist, and the situation in the region where tankers had caught fire many times before, will deteriorate even further.”

“We call on the entire international community, first and foremost, the remaining members of the JCPOA, including the ‘European Three’ (UK, Germany, France) and Iran to demonstrate political far-sightedness and will to achieve the goals that these comprehensive agreements had been signed with. We need to act. Without the INF, the situation in the world will definitely become more dangerous,” the senior diplomat concluded.