Zarif urges Biden admin to 'make up its mind' about Iran deal

Iran’s foreign minister has urged the Biden administration to make up its mind about the policy it seeks to adopt vis-à-vis Iran and the 2015 nuclear deal, and stop making “meaningless and ambiguous” remarks.

Mohammad Javad Zarif said US President Joe Biden has to make a decision about the Joint Comprehensive Plan of Action (JCPOA), the nuclear deal signed between Tehran and world powers, which was abandoned by former US president Donald Trump in 2018.

“Biden has yet to make up his mind about what he wants to do. They ought to make a decision whether they are going to continue Trump’s policy or adopt a new one,” Zarif said in a televised interview on Sunday night.

“The Biden administration has not yet made any decision on what it is going to do, and their words are ambiguous and meaningless. They still have time to correct their remarks,” he added.

In an unconsidered move on Sunday, President Biden suggested that Iran must “stop enriching uranium” before the US lifts its sanctions.

During an interview with CBS’ Face the Nation ahead of the 55th Super Bowl, he nodded his head in affirmation when he was asked if Iran must stop enriching uranium first.

However, after hours of debate and controversy over the issue among international experts and journalists, a senior US official later made it clear to Reuters that Biden meant Iran must stop enriching uranium beyond the limits under the JCPOA.

‘US must guarantee Trump’s moves won’t happen again’

In his Sunday interview, the Iranian foreign minister said before returning to the JCPOA, the US needs to prove it would not happen again.

How should Iran make sure “someone like Trump will not take office and tear apart the deal again?” Zarif asked.

“The Americans must prove the Trump experience will not be repeated. This is not a precondition, this is a subject of talks,” he added.

The Iranian foreign minister stressed that the US must guarantee it will not repeat its previous moves, and also deal with the damages it caused on the Iranian nation by leaving the deal and re-imposing its sanctions.

“However, the first step is the implementation of commitments,” Zarif said, making it clear that Iran’s return to compliance with the deal is merely dependent on the US return.

Zarif was echoing the remarks made by Iran’s Leader Ayatollah Seyyed Ali Khamenei in early January about the issue of compensation. The Leader had noted that Iran’s demand for compensation will be pursued in later stages.

Iran FM rules out new talks on JCPOA, says Biden must return to negotiated accord

The Iranian foreign minister says Tehran will not hold new talks on the JCPOA and the new US President Biden must return to the same nuclear deal.

Under his signature ‘maximum pressure’ policy against Iran, the former US president withdrew Washington from the deal back in May 2018 and restored those economic sanctions the agreement had removed. The US also began threatening third countries with “secondary sanctions” if they violated the American bans.

Trump abandoned the deal despite its multilateral nature and the fact that it has been endorsed as United Nations Security Council Resolution 2231.

Biden voiced strong criticism of Trump’s withdrawal from the JCPOA during his 2020 campaign, when he also promised to rejoin the accord signed when he was vice president. However, he has failed to take corrective measures since he assumed office on January 20.

Iran says the United States’ potential return to the JCPOA could only be meaningful if Washington removed all of the sanctions.

Leader of the Islamic Revolution Ayatollah Seyyed Ali Khamenei said earlier on Sunday that Iran will retrace its nuclear countermeasures once the United States lifts its sanctions in a manner that could be verifiable by Tehran.

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