Iranian President Ebrahim Raisi described the dispatch of a big team of negotiators to Vienna as a sign of Iran’s serious resolve in the JCPOA talks, calling on France to work with the others to make the negotiations yield results and have the sanctions against Tehran terminated.
In a telephone conversation with his French counterpart Emmanuel Macron on Monday, Raisi said Tehran seeks a definitive result through the ongoing talks in the Austrian capital, emphasizing that the Vienna negotiations must end in removal of sanctions imposed on Iran.
“Sanctions have failed to stymie Iran’s progress and today, the entire world knows who violated the JCPOA, and they must return to their commitments,” the Iranian president said.
“The current conditions are the result of Americans and Europeans not fulfilling their commitments as per the JCPOA,” he added.
Raisi noted that those parties who violated the JCPOA must gain the opposite side’s trust so that negotiations could proceed in a real manner and bear fruit, Press TV reported.
“If Americans remove sanctions and Europeans fulfill their commitments, you should have no concern about Iran fulfilling its commitments, because we have shown time and again and in practice that we abide by our obligations,” he stated.
“Iran seeks (a definitive) result in (Vienna) talks and negotiations must end in removal of sanctions,” President Raisi stressed.
He then told Macron that if they believe in the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) as an international authority, they should note that “the agency has frequently announced that the Islamic Republic of Iran is committed to its nuclear obligations.”
He added that during his recent visit to Iran, Director General of the IAEA Rafael Grossi said nothing about Iran not being in compliance with its obligations, adding, “We are now ready to continue full cooperation with the Agency.”
Macron, for his part, condemned unilateral withdrawal of the United States from the JCPOA, saying that Paris considers the nuclear deal a common responsibility for its members.
Macron added that he has talked to US President Joe Biden and that Paris is bent on going on with the negotiations until a final result is reached.
The French president’s phone call came after the end of the first meeting of the seventh round of Vienna talks earlier the same day during which, according to Iran’s top negotiator, Ali Baqeri, all participants in the first meeting of the seventh round of talks have agreed that removing sanctions must be the main focus of negotiations.
Source: Iranian media
