US envoy's ignorance of JCPOA text, says Iran foreign minister

The recent remarks by US Ambassador to the United Nations Nikki Haley show her lack of familiarity with the content of the historic nuclear agreement between Iran and the P5+1 group of countries, Iranian Foreign Minister Mohammad Javad Zarif says.

ID: 49020 | Date: 2017/09/02
Zarif made remakrs in an interview with the official news website of the Iranian administration, dolat.ir, published on Saturday. 


“What Ms.Haley has declared mostly show her ignorance of the text of the [nuclear] agreement in all fields, about which she expressed her opinion,” the top Iranian diplomat said. 


Zarif added that the deal, known as the Joint Comprehensive Plan of Action (JCPOA), is a “completely clear and transparent” agreement, adding that the level of monitoring has been determined in it.


He said the JCPOA has been negotiated and written very precisely and has a complete framework with specified approaches in all fields.


Underlining the Islamic Republic’s stance, Zarif tweeted later on Saturday that the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) certifies Iran’s commitment to the nuclear agreement according to the provisions and conditions outlined in the deal, “not the ulterior motives of US officials, nor of lobbyists.”  


#IAEA verification of Iran compliance with JCPOA is based on terms of agreement; not the ulterior motives of US officials, nor of lobbyists.


— Javad Zarif (@JZarif) September 2, 2017


Iran and the five permanent members of the United Nations Security Council - the United States, France, Britain, Russia and China plus Germany - signed the JCPOA on July 14, 2015 and started implementing it on January 16, 2016.


Under the nuclear agreement, Iran undertook to put limitations on its nuclear program in exchange for the removal of nuclear-related sanctions against Tehran.


Speaking at a news conference in New York on August 25, Haley called on the IAEA to request access to Iranian military sites, in what is regarded as an attempt by Washington to undermine the JCPOA, which is a multilateral nuclear deal.


“We are encouraging the IAEA to use all the authorities they have and to pursue every angle possible with the JCPOA, and we will continue to support the IAEA in that process,” she said.