BRUSSELS (Pakistan Point News / Sputnik - 18th July, 2020) The next regular session of the joint commission of the Iran nuclear deal, officially known as the Joint Comprehensive Deal of Action (JCPOA), will take place once the health situation allows, EU High Representative for Foreign Affairs and Security Policy Josep Borrell said on Friday.
Earlier in July, Iranian Foreign Minister Mohammad Javad Zarif sent a letter to Borrell, which outlined Tehran's concerns over suspected failure by France, Germany and the United Kingdom to meet JCPOA obligations and triggered the Dispute Resolution Mechanism after the European signatories drafted an anti-Iran resolution at the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) board meeting in late June, demanding Iran to allow IAEA inspectors access to its nuclear facilities. According to the JCPOA deal, the joint commission needs to respond to Tehran's concerns over the course of 15 days or extend this period if all sides agree.
"In light of travel restrictions due to COVID 19 pandemic, it has not been possible so far to convene a regular meeting of the Joint commission of the JCPOA ... The next meeting of the Joint Commission will be scheduled as soon as travel conditions allow," Borrell said in a statement.
The top EU diplomat added that the JCPOA signatories had "undertaken extensive consultations" and all sides intended to preserve the deal.
In July 2015, Iran signed a nuclear agreement with China, France, Russia, the United Kingdom, the United States, Germany and the European Union. The JCPOA stipulates that Iran must scale back its nuclear program and downgrade its uranium reserves in exchange for sanctions relief, including the lifting of the UN arms embargo five years after the accord was adopted. In 2018, the United States unilaterally withdrew from the JCPOA and has since re-implemented wide-ranging unilateral sanctions on Iran.
According to Borrell, the next joint commission meeting's agenda will involve resolving issues over implementation, discussing the impact of Washington's withdrawal from the deal and the re-imposition of US sanctions.
