Iran rejects E3’s nuclear stand as 'irresponsible, unjustified', calls for UN action

Iran’s Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi has sharply criticized the European trio of France, Germany and the UK for referring their nuclear dispute with Tehran to the UN Security Council.

Araghchi’s statement was made in a phone conversation with the United Nations Secretary General Antonio Guterres on Thursday night where he also slammed them for failing to condemn joint Israeli-U.S. strikes on Iranian civillian nuclear sites in June.

“The E3’s threatening to re-impose the repealed UN Security Council resolutions against Iran and their ignoring of the military aggressions of the United States and the Zionist regime are irresponsible and unjustifiable,” Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi told the UN Secretary General Antonio Guterres in a telephone contact.

“Their approach will only complicate the issue,” he added as the three European powers which are parties to Iran’s 2015 nuclear deal (JCPOA) have demanded return of nuclear sanctions if they cannot reach an agreement with Iran before the UNSC Resolution 2231 expires in October.

Iran’s top diplomat also urged the world body to adopt a firm position and condemn the bombing of its civilian nuclear sites which were under the UN safeguards, local media reported quoting a Foreign Ministry statement as the Security Council will decide the fate of sanctions of Iran’s nuclear program by end of September.

“Araghchi pointed to the responsible approach of Iran in conducting constructive talks with IAEA to reach an understanding to fulfill its safeguards obligations in the new situation resulting from the illegal attacks on Iran's nuclear facilities, and emphasized the necessity for the European parties and members of the UN Security Council to understand the importance of this development,” read the statement.

According to the official IRNA news agency, the UN chief welcomed the recent agreement on the modality of interaction between Iran and its nuclear agency and emphasized the UN's support for continuing the talks and diplomatic process regarding the Iranian nuclear issue.

In a televised interview about the newly-signed deal in Cairo, the Iranian foreign minister said that cooperation with the IAEA is an independent issue and has nothing to do with the conditions laid down by the E3 for extension of Resolution 2231 and postponing the re-imposition of Iran’s nuclear sanctions.

“We have not accepted the European troika’s conditions,” he said referring to the demands including resumption of inspections, zero enrichment and renewed nuclear talks with the US while China and Russia as JCPOA signatories and UNSC member states have tabled a draft resolution to extend exemption of Iran’s nuclear sanctions.

Tehran and IAEA signed a framework deal on Tuesday in the Egyptian capital on facilitating the agency’s access to Iran nuclear sites which has been banned after Iran’s Parliament suspended cooperation with the agency in June in the wake of the Israel-US war against Iran and bombing of its three major nuclear sites.

Araghchi stressed his statements in Egypt saying that validity of the Cairo agreement is conditional on no hostile action against Iran, including re-imposition of UN sanctions, otherwise Tehran would regard the document as terminated.

He also said that Iran’s highly enriched nuclear material reportedly at 408.6 kilograms remains under the rubble of bombed facilities and that IAEA has accepted the difference between visiting the bombed nuclear facilities and those which are unharmed.

Following the Israel-US war against Iran in June and the airstrikes on its three major nuclear sites, the Parliament passed a bill suspending the cooperation with the UN nuclear watchdog for failing to condemn the attacks and for the agency’s resolution on Tehran’s non-compliance which Iran said served as pretext to attack its civilian nuclear sites under UN safeguards.

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