The European Union has not carried out a single transaction via INSTEX a year since the trade mechanism was launched, but Tehran still believes that it is too early to speak about the nuclear deal's death, Iranian Foreign Minister Mohammad Javad Zarif has told Germany's Der Spiegel
MOSCOW (Pakistan Point News / Sputnik - 25th January, 2020) The European Union has not carried out a single transaction via INSTEX a year since the trade mechanism was launched, but Tehran still believes that it is too early to speak about the nuclear deal's death, Iranian Foreign Minister Mohammad Javad Zarif has told Germany's Der Spiegel.
INSTEX was set up by France, Germany and the United Kingdom in January 2019 to facilitate trade exchanges with Iran in the face of sanctions that the United States reinstated against Iran after unilaterally withdrawing from the 2015 nuclear accord.
"INSTEX is basically an accounting company. More than a year and a half after the U.S. withdrawal from the [Joint Comprehensive Plan of Action] JCPOA, the Europeans haven't succeeded in carrying out a single transaction," Zarif said.
When asked whether the nuclear deal was dead, the top Iranian diplomat replied in the negative.
"No. Inspections and transparency about Iran's activities are an important part of the agreement, and they are still happening. The EU has not fulfilled parts of the agreement and Iran has not fulfilled parts, but that doesn't mean it is dead," he stated.
The future of the nuclear deal became uncertain when the United States unilaterally withdrew from the pact in May 2018 and reinstated sanctions on Iran. A year later, Tehran began reducing its obligations under the deal and said it would continue to do so unless the European signatories guaranteed its interests.
After the US killing of top Iranian commander Qasem Soleimani in early January, Tehran announced that it was no longer bound by the remaining nuclear deal obligations. The Islamic republic yet continues cooperating with the International Atomic Energy Agency and promises to resume the JCPOA compliance once sanctions are lifted and Iran's interests are protected. The EU3 leaders, in turn, have said that they were left with no choice but to trigger the dispute resolution mechanism under the 2015 deal.
