Iran, US continue to exchange messages on JCPOA revival: FM Amir-Abdollahian
Iranian Foreign Minister Hossein Amir-Abdollahian says Tehran and Washington continue to exchange messages on reviving the US-abandoned nuclear deal through the European Union’s coordinator and foreign ministers of certain countries.
Amir-Abdollahian made the remarks in a Sunday meeting with his Syrian counterpart, Faisal Mekdad, on the sidelines of the 77th annual session of the United Nations General Assembly in New York.
“Iran pursues the path of diplomacy through a logical approach and underlines [the necessity of achieving] a lasting agreement, including guarantees about taking advantage of the deal’s economic benefits [by Iran],” he said, referring to the nuclear accord, formally known as the Joint Comprehensive Plan of Action (JCPOA).
The United States, under former president Donald Trump, abandoned the nuclear deal in May 2018 and reinstated unilateral sanctions that the agreement had lifted.
The talks to salvage the agreement kicked off in the Austrian capital of Vienna in April last year, months after Joe Biden succeeded Trump, with the intention of examining Washington’s seriousness in rejoining the deal and removing its anti-Iran sanctions.
In recent weeks, there have been unfruitful, indirect exchanges of responses between Tehran and Washington over an EU draft proposal on restoring the JCPOA, with Iranian officials urging their American counterparts to show “realism” and “flexibility” in order to secure a final agreement.
Joint fight against terrorism restored peace to Syria: Amir-Abdollahian
Elsewhere in the remarks, the Iranian foreign minister said cooperation between Tehran and Damascus in fighting terrorism and extremism helped restore peace to Syria.
Amir-Abdollahian rejected any form of foreign interference in Syria’s affairs as well as measures taken to foment instability in West Asia.
“Cooperation between the two countries in the past years in the fight against terrorism and extremism … expedited restoration of peace and calm to Syria,” he added.
The Syrian foreign minister, for his part, hailed Iran’s role in the establishment of peace and security in the region and in fighting terrorism.
He said Tehran and Damascus are proceeding with the best form of cooperation at regional and international levels.
Damascus underscores the importance of trade and economic cooperation with Iran to thwart the outcomes of the West’s illegal coercive measures against Syria, Mekdad said.
