Iran president: US sends message for talks and then adds to sanctions

President Ebrahim Raeisi says the world must give Iran the right not to trust the US because of its inconsistent actions. 

"On the one hand, the Americans are sending the message that they are ready to negotiate, but on the other hand, they are adding to the sanctions. The world should give us the right not to trust them," he told a group of people in Tehran Friday.

His remarks came after the administration of US President Joe Biden on Thursday imposed a new round of sanctions on Iranian petrochemical producers as well as a network of Chinese, Emirati and Indian companies over what the US Treasury described as facilitating the export of Iran's oil.

The US Treasury Department said in a statement that the new restrictive measures were aimed at piling up pressure on Iran amid stalled negotiations aimed at reviving the 2015 Iran deal, officially known as the Joint Comprehensive Plan of Action (JCPOA).

"The United States is pursuing the path of meaningful diplomacy to achieve a mutual return to compliance with the Joint Comprehensive Plan of Action," Brian Nelson, a senior Treasury Department official, claimed in the statement.

"Absent a deal, we will continue to use our sanctions authorities to limit exports of petroleum, petroleum products, and petrochemical products from Iran," Nelson added, saying, “The United States will continue to expose the networks Iran uses to conceal sanctions evasion activities."

The Treasury Department said it was imposing sanctions on several Iranian petrochemical firms, including what it claimed to be front companies in China and the United Arab Emirates for Iran's state-owned company and Triliance, which is a Hong Kong-based company already under US sanctions for its dealing with Iran.

The Iran-based petrochemical producers targeted by the sanctions are Marun Petrochemical Company, Kharg Petrochemical Company and Fanavaran Petrochemical Company.

The Treasury also took action against China-based broker Jeff Gao and Indian national Mohammad Shaheed Ruknooddin Bhore for allegedly managing business for Triliance.

Firms, individuals and other entities targeted by US sanctions are subject to asset freezes and Americans are generally barred from doing business with them.

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Negotiations have been held in the Austrian capital of Vienna since April last year to restore the 2015 Iran deal, which was ditched by former US President Donald Trump in May 2018.

In quitting the agreement, Trump introduced what he called the “maximum pressure” campaign to bring Iran to its knees. Tehran maintains that the policy has failed dismally. The Biden administration agrees, yet it has not taken any tangible steps to deliver on its promise of repealing the policy.

In recent months, Iran has cited Washington’s indecisiveness as the reason behind the protraction of the talks, as a number of key issues remain unresolved, ranging from the removal of all post-JCPOA sanctions to the provision of guarantees by the American side that it will not leave the deal again.

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