Russia: US pulling out of JCPOA deprives world of key nonproliferation regime
Russia has warned of the consequences of a possible US withdrawal from the 2015 nuclear deal with Iran, saying such a move will deprive the world of one of the key non-proliferation regimes.
Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov made the remarks during a press conference with his Jordanian counterpart, Ayman Safadi, in the Black Sea resort city of Sochi on Thursday.
"If the US, as President Donald Trump has repeatedly stated, announces withdrawal from this agreement, then of course all of us, the international community, will lose one of the most important tools contributing to ensuring the non-proliferation regime for weapons of mass destruction," he said.
Trump has been a vociferous critic of the Iran nuclear accord, which was negotiated under his predecessor, Barack Obama. He has called the agreement the “worst deal ever” and even threatened to tear it up.
Back in January, Trump said he was extending the sanctions relief on Iran for the last time, giving the European signatories a May 12 deadline to fix what he claimed “flaws” in the agreement or he would refuse to waive those bans.
Iran insists there is no way it will renegotiate the nuclear pact, which is officially called the Joint Comprehensive Plan of Action (JCPOA) and endorsed by UN Security Council Resolution 2231.
Elsewhere in his remarks, Lavrov commented on a recent televised show by Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, during which he presented what he called documents on Iran’s “secret” nuclear work.
The top Russian diplomat said the Israeli data related to "past activities" that had already been taken into account by the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA).
He also urged Tel Aviv to to immediately provide its purported documents on Iran to the UN nuclear agency.
"If Israel or anyone else received documents which allegedly prove Iran still has plans to develop nuclear weapons, then these documents should be given to the IAEA, which is responsible for implementation of the Joint Comprehensive Plan of Action immediately," Lavrov said.
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