The European Union has rejected a 60-day deadline set by Iran’s President Hassan Rouhani for the remaining signatories to the Joint Comprehensive Plan of Action (JCPoA) to address Tehran’s legal rights and protect its interests against U.S. sanctions.
“We reject any ultimatums and we will assess Iran’s compliance on the basis of Iran’s performance regarding its nuclear-related commitments under the JCPoA and the NPT (Treaty on the Non-Proliferation of Nuclear Weapons),” an official statement released by the EU foreign policy chief Federica Mogherini and the foreign ministers of France, Germany and the UK on May 9 reads.
The statement was released in response to Iran’s May 8 decision to stop exporting excess uranium and heavy water. The country’s President gave the other parties in the JCPoA a 60-days ultimatum to employment their commitments under the deal and help Tehran overcome the increasing U.S. sanctions.
“We strongly urge Iran to continue to implement its commitments under the JCPoA in full as it has done until now and to refrain from any escalatory steps,” the EU statement added.
Despite rejecting Rouhani’s ultimatum, the European countries stressed that they will remain commitment to the agreement, which they described as “a key achievement of the global nuclear non-proliferation architecture, which is in the security interest of all.”
The European countries also condemned U.S. sanctions on Tehran saying that they are determined to continue pursuing efforts to enable the continuation of legitimate trade with the Islamic country.
The EU’s statement will likely further complicate the situation as Iran appears to be determined to end its commitment to several terms of JCPoA in the face of U.S. sections and threats. So far, European countries have failed to assist Tehran in overcoming U.S. sanctions.
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