“China maintains close communication with signatory parties and commit to JCPOA, on the need to uphold and implement the deal,” Shuang said on Tuesday, addressing his regular weekly press conference.

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The multilateral nuclear deal has been in jeopardy since US President Donald Trump pulled his country out of the JCPOA in May last year and stepped up sanctions on the Islamic Republic in what he called ‘maximum pressure’ campaign.

Under the deal, signed between Iran and the five permanent members of the United Nations Security Council – the United States, France, Britain, Russia and China – plus Germany, Tehran undertook to put limits on its nuclear program in exchange for the removal of nuclear-related sanctions.

Since May, Iran has introduced cuts to its nuclear commitments twice in compliance with articles 26 and 36 of the JCPOA. Iran says these measures will be reversible as soon as Europe finds practical ways to shield the Iranian economy from unilateral US sanctions, which were imposed last year when Washington withdrew from the nuclear deal.

“What we have proposed to Europeans is to either buy our oil for their companies through obtaining US’s permission or if they cannot do this, provide the Islamic Republic with credit lines in proportion to the same amount of our oil sales. Our return to full JCPOA implementation is impossible without these measures,” Araghchi added in the interview.

Pointing to France’s initiative to salvage the deal in G7 summit in Biarritz, he highlighted that “the American side has shown some flexibility in issuing waivers for Iran’s oil sales.”

“This is the very split that has opened up in America’s maximum pressure policy and the very achievement that Iran is obtaining in its maximum resistance policy,” he highlighted

“There will be strenuous and complicated negotiations ahead of us for arriving at a specific formula,” to salvage the JCPOA, the deputy FM added.

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“While we are still using the old IR1 centrifuges, the more advanced ones, namely the IR6 and IR8 centrifuges, are ready for implementation,” he said, adding that the new domestically-manufactured centrifuge machines have the capacity to increase the capacity to enrich uranium 26 to 48 times more than the existing IR-1 machines.

Tehran has rowed back on its nuclear commitments twice in compliance with articles 26 and 36 of the 2015 deal, known as the Joint Comprehensive Plan of Action (JCPOA).

As a first step, Iran increased its enriched uranium stockpile to beyond the 300 kilograms set by the JCPOA.

In the second step, Tehran began enriching uranium to purity rates beyond the JCPOA-limit of 3.76 percent.

Iran has said its reciprocal measures will be reversible as soon as Europe finds practical ways to shield the Iranian economy from unilateral US sanctions which were imposed last year when President Donald Trump withdrew from the 2015 nuclear deal.

This is while, according to Rezaei, European signatories of the JCPOA have so far failed to uphold their commitments. They have expressed vocal support for the deal but failed to provide meaningful economic incentives as required under the nuclear agreement.

Tehran has also warned that it may push forward with 20% uranium enrichment and resume previous activities at the Arak heavy-water nuclear reactor in a third nuclear commitment containment.

Rezaei said the Western countries should be aware that Iran slowed down its nuclear developments and halted some of its centrifuges to fulfill its JCPOA commitments, while such measures are “all reversible” and the country will resume them step by step.

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Ways to de-escalate tensions in the Middle East, the need to preserve Iran nuclear deal, and using the means of diplomacy to establish stability and security in the region were among topics of discussion during the meeting.

According to a statement by the French Foreign Ministry, Araghchi had also held in-depth talks with French Foreign Minister Jean-Yves Le Drian before meeting the country’s president.

The statement says that French officials have conveyed to the Iranian diplomat their expectation for Tehran’s quick return to the nuclear deal and also to take necessary steps to de-escalate tensions in the region.

Regional tensions raised initially in May 2018 when the United States unilaterally withdraw from the Joint Comprehensive Plan of Action (JCPOA) and re-imposed harsh sanctions on Iran’s economy, targeting its oil exports and banking relations. Despite this violation, Tehran adhered to its commitments under the deal, as was endorsed by IAEA, but other parties failed in safeguarding Iran’s economic interests.

One year after US’ pullout, Iran announced that it is reducing its commitments to the deal step by step, noting that the measure is taken according to the agreement’s terms and as a way to balance the commitments. Tehran said all these reductions of commitments are reversible as soon as other parties put up a protective wall for its economy against US sanctions.

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“INSTEX is not even a food-for-oil program since Europeans will not buy oil from Iran via the channel. INSTEX should not be turned into a larger deception than the JCPOA for Iran,” he added.

After the unilateral withdrawal of the United States from Iran nuclear deal, officially known as Joint Comprehensive Plan of Action, in May 2018 and re-imposition of tough sanctions against Tehran, other signatories to the deal asked Iran to remain in the deal and promised to safeguard its economic interests.

European partners established a financial mechanism dubbed INSTEX (Instrument in Support of Trade Exchanges) with a tangible delay. The channel will only cover trade of food and medicine, at least in its initial stages. Tehran says this is not sufficient as it should also facilitate Iran’s oil export which is under US sanctions.

The lawmaker went on to say that INSTEX will only be effective under the four following conditions. “First: providing the ground for buying goods which are under [US] sanctions. Second: European’s buying oil from Iran. Third: not conditioning Iran-Europe banking transaction to [ratification of] FATF [-related bills in Iran]. Fourth: paying for Iran’s oil and goods’ in cash in addition to barter trade.”

“Remaining parties to the JCPOA should put up a protective wall for Iran against US sanctions,” he stressed.

Seeing other parties’ inability or unwillingness to practically support the country in face of US sanctions, Iran announced in May 2019 that it would reduce its commitments to the deal in 60-day steps. Tehran highlights that all these reductions are according to paragraphs 26 and 36 of the deal while also saying that these measures are quickly reversible.

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One year after US unilateral withdrawal from the Joint Comprehensive Plan of Action (JCPOA) and introducing sanctions against Iran, Tehran announced that it is reducing its commitments to the deal to create a balance in the agreement. Iranian officials say that reducing commitments is legal and done according to paragraphs 26 and 36 of the deal. Iran says this process of reduction will continue every 60 days as long as other parties to the deal can safeguard Iran’s economic interests from damages of US illegal sanctions.

“Four years ago, we hadn’t any limitation [on the nuclear program], and if other parties to the JCPOA don’t abide by their commitments, we will certainly return to conditions prior to the deal,” added the MP.

Western countries’ ‘political play’ is unacceptable, Boroujerdi highlighted, noting that the JCPOA is a bilateral agreement, and Europeans should know that if they don’t honor their commitments, Iran will ‘decisively’ reduce its commitments under the deal.

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“Europe and America are disloyal, wicked and deceitful and they impose their interests on the Iranian nation,” added the principalist lawmaker.

After the US withdrawal from the nuclear deal, officially known as Joint Comprehensive Plan of Action (JCPOA), in May 2018, European signatories to the deal called on Iran to stick to the deal, promising that they would facilitate trade ties with Iran. However, after more than one year, no practical and tangible measure has been adopted. Europeans have announced that a special-purpose vehicle called INSTEX (Instrument in Support of Trade Exchanges) has been operational but its first transactions are yet to be completed. The channel is aimed at providing food and medicine to Iran, at least in its first stage, but Iran says this is not enough and it must also cover Iran’s oil export and banking relations. Tehran is reducing its commitments to the deal, according to paragraphs 26 and 36 of the JCPOA, asking for other parties to comply with their commitments under the deal and shield its economy from damages of illegal US sanctions.

“When the Islamic Republic gave 60-day deadline to Europe and those countries didn’t complied with their obligations, [Iranian administration] should have immediately pulled out of the JCPOA and increased its uranium enrichment, however, since the Islamic Republic is complying with international agreements, it gave Europe more time,” said Salek who represents Isfahan in the Parliament.

He called on the Iranian administration to adopt ‘brave, serious, and firm’ measure against US sanctions and violation of the JCPOA.

The lawmaker also said that the administration should not scare people about the effects of FATF-related bills’ rejection or withdrawal from nuclear deal “because currently the maximum pressure of sanctions is imposed on the Iranian nation.”

“The JCPOA failed to cure the problem of sanctions and hence the Islamic republic should follow Revolutionary diplomacy and start uranium enrichment with great speed,” he stressed.

Referring to the UK’s illegal measure in seizing a supertanker carrying Iranian oil, the MP said, “retaliatory measure should be taken against oil tankers heading Europe from the Strait of Hormuz.”

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Addressing the European parties to the deal, also known as the Joint Comprehensive Plan of Action (JCPOA), the Iranian vice president said, “Should you seek to preserve the deal, you would better to fulfill your [JCPOA] pledges.”

The official noted that Iran’s returning to full compliance under the pact is “an easy task” which could be done quickly, however, it depends on mutual respect and obligation of all parties to the deal.

Last May, Washington left the JCPOA that had been struck under the previous American administration. It then returned the nuclear-related sanctions that had been lifted by the deal.

On the first anniversary of Washington’s unilateral withdrawal the JCPOA, Iran notified the five remaining signatories — France, Britain, China and Russia plus Germany — of its decision to suspend some of its commitments for 60 days.

In the second phase of scaling down its JCPOA commitments, Iran increased the purity of its enriched uranium, saying it no longer is sticking to the 3.67% limit it had agreed to in the deal.

Tehran has said it would potentially scrap the deal if its partners failed to do enough for Iran to achieve the economic benefits that it is promised under the agreement.

Meanwhile, it says the doors to diplomacy are still open if the Europeans undertake necessary actions to secure Iran’s interests.

In an interview with NBC Nightly News’ Lester Holt on Monday, Iran’s Foreign Minister Mohammad Javad Zarif said the door is “wide open” to diplomacy if Trump removes the array of sanctions that have affected the country’s trade and banking relations with other countries.

“Once those sanctions are lifted, then … the room for negotiation is wide open,” Zarif added.

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“If they (the US) want to go to war they are doing a perfect job,” he also added.

The United States unilaterally pulled out of the Iran nuclear deal in May 2018 and imposed sanctions on Iran in several stages. The move was politically condemned by the international community, especially by other signatories to the deal namely UK, France, Germany, Russia and China, yet, during the next one year, no practical measure was taken to shield Iran’s economy from harsh US sanctions.

Exactly one year after the US withdrawl, Iran announced that it would reduce its commitments to the deal within some 60-day stages. So far Iran’s enriched uranium stockpile and enrichment level has exceeded those agreed in the deal. Tehran says all its measure are according to paragraphs 26 and 36 of the deal while IAEA endorsing that all of Iran’s steps are taken in a transparent manner. Iran says all these steps are reversible if other parties safeguard Iran’s economic interests, including its oil export and banking relations which are under US sanctions.

At the same time, US officials repeatedly say that they are ready for talks without preconditions while the Iranian officials say that there will be no talks with the US under pressure.

ElBaradei went on to say that Iran’s actions are a ‘cry for help’ noting that ‘they are not an imminent threat’. He said that Iran is too far from 90% uranium enrichment needed for a nuclear bomb while Iran has always reiterated that nukes have no place in its defense doctrine and that uranium enrichment is solely done for peaceful purposes.

“It’s a symbolic reaction from a country that can’t even import medicines because of sanctions imposed by the US,” he said, also describing President Donald Trump’s decision to back out of the nuclear accord when it was “working” as “lacking rationale, legal basis and any common sense”.

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Kamalvandi said that “right now, the level of uranium enrichment has increased from 3.67% to 4.5%.”

Earlier today, the spokesman said that 20% uranium enrichment is one of the options that Iran may resort to in the third phase of countermeasures to reduce JCPOA commitments in the face of other parties’ lack of action to live up to their commitments under the deal.

During a press conference in Tehran yesterday, at the end of Iran’s 60-day deadline to the European countries, the spokesman announced the second phase of Iran’s retaliatory measures under the deal and said that uranium enrichment level would surpass the 3.67% limit.

Iran insists that the reductions in commitments do not violate the nuclear deal, but they are based on paragraphs 26 and 36 of the agreement.

“Having failed to implement their obligations under JCPOA—incl after US withdrawal—EU/E3 should at minimum politically support Iran’s remedial measures under Para 36, incl at IAEA. E3 have no pretexts to avoid a firm political stance to preserve JCPOA & counter US unilateralism,” Foreign Minister Zarif tweeted on Sunday after Iran’s announcement.

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