Iranian Foreign Minister Mohammad Javad Zarif said that in addition to political commitment, Europe should take practical steps to ensure the 2015 Iran nuclear deal, known as the Joint Comprehensive Plan of Action (JCPOA), will survive.

“What we need from the Europeans is both the political commitment, which they have made, now we need to see the measures in place on the ground, not simply in writing, not simply in words — in the banking sector, in the investment sector, in the energy sector, in the transportation sector, in the SME sector,” Zarif told Euronews in an interview.

“I believe generally Europe is underestimating its power and its influence, we believe that it should be more active in regional peace and security, in international peace and security as well as in promoting a greater cooperation and dialogue,” he added.

Zarif meanwhile, said that the European Union can do more to bring about peace and stability in the Middle East.

EU countries this week gave European firms legal cover to operate in Iran despite the US pullout from the nuclear deal, the bloc’s foreign policy chief Federica Mogherini said, after a report that the Trump administration has rejected calls by Brussels for an exemption from sanctions.

Trump withdrew from the Iran nuclear deal in May, and Washington now plans to re-impose sanctions on Tehran next month. The first round of US sanctions on Iran goes into effect in August, followed by ones targeting Iran’s oil exports in November.

Elsewhere in the interview with Euronews, the Iranian top diplomat said that Tehran has good ties with Russia and Syrian and blamed the US for supporting the ISIL terrorist group.

Source: Tasnim News Agency