A girl with a pattern of the national flag of Iran on her forehead. (Xinhua/Ahmad Halabisaz)
To ensure the viability of the JCPOA, the strict implementation of its obligations by all parties involved is required, the Russian Foreign Ministry said.
MOSCOW, Feb. 5 (Xinhua) -- Russia has called on all countries involved in the 2015 Iran nuclear deal, or the Joint Comprehensive Plan of Action (JCPOA), to preserve the agreement.
"We urge all participants to put aside the issue of the dispute resolution mechanism and focus on the main thing: the formation of the environment and prerequisites in order to begin to struggle for the preservation of the JCPOA," the Russian Foreign Ministry said in a statement released Wednesday.
The point of no return has not yet been reached, the statement said, adding that to ensure the viability of the JCPOA, the strict implementation of its obligations by all parties involved is required.
The JCPOA was reached in 2015 between Iran and the P5+1 (the five permanent members of the United Nations Security Council -- the United States, Britain, Russia, France, China, plus Germany) and the European Union. Tehran agreed to roll back parts of its nuclear weapons program in exchange for decreased economic sanctions.
In reaction to the U.S.' withdrawal from the landmark deal in May 2018 and the subsequent sanctions, and in response to Europe's sluggishness in facilitating Iran's banking transactions and oil exports, Iran has been gradually moving away from its nuclear commitments since May 2019.
The ministry said that recent statements made by EU High Representative for Foreign Affairs and Security Policy Josep Borrell could make the impression that an agreement on extending the time range for resolving disputes and postponing the relevant dates has been reached by all participants of the JCPOA.
However, at the moment, Borrell has only received a joint appeal from Britain, Germany and France about their decision to launch a dispute resolution mechanism, the statement said.
This did not go further, as the JCPOA does not contain any explanations about how and when the mechanism is activated, it said.
The ministry also said that Borrell pointed that the JCPOA member countries were reluctant to push themselves into tight time frames.
Russia fully agreed that it is not worth starting a process that will lead the JCPOA to a complete collapse, it said. ■
