Anouar El Anouni, the EU foreign policy spokesman, made the remarks in Brussels on Friday in a meeting with reporters. Without mentioning that the EU’s non-commitment and inaction have led to the deadlock in the implementation of the 2015 nuclear deal between Iran and six world powers, El Anouni said that Iran had distanced itself from its nuclear commitments, but with its recent action, it has taken a step that creates tension.
Iran and the five members of the United Nations Security Council plus Germany signed an agreement known as the Joint Comprehensive Plan of Action (JCPOA) to address the peaceful nuclear activities of Iran. The then-US President Donald Trump withdrew his country from the deal in 2018 and unilaterally re-imposed sanctions on Iran, which were removed according to the deal.
Last week, Director General of the IAEA Rafael Grossi announced that Iran had begun the process of gassing advanced centrifuges known as IR6 at the Fordow nuclear facility and confirmed in a separate report to the BoG that, following increased production of 60% enriched uranium, Iran had agreed to increase monitoring of the Fordow facility.
Iran has emphasized that the measures taken were to protect the country’s interests and further develop the peaceful nuclear industry within the framework of Iran’s rights and obligations under the Safeguards Agreement.
Iran’s Foreign Ministry Spokesman Esmaeil Baghaei has rejected the claims made in a joint statement by France, Germany, and the UK concerning the recent developments in Iran’s peaceful nuclear program.
The decision to activate advanced centrifuges at an Iranian nuclear facility was made within the framework of the rights of the parties to the Non-Proliferation Treaty (NPT) and with prior information and under the supervision of the IAEA, Baghaei said on Tuesday night while responding to the statement of the three European countries, together known as E3 or Troika.