Any future nuclear agreement with Iran must include a complete ban on enrichment, US Envoy Brian Hook told a virtual panel on Wednesday
WASHINGTON (Pakistan Point News / Sputnik - 06th August, 2020) Any future nuclear agreement with Iran must include a complete ban on enrichment, US Envoy Brian Hook told a virtual panel on Wednesday.
"The Iran nuclear deal, by allowing Iran to retain its enrichment capabilities, signaled to the other countries in the region that when you show up [to discuss the Section 123 of the United States Atomic Energy Act of 1954] the answer that comes back is 'You know what, I think we'll take the deal you gave Iran.' This is why we have to restore the standard of no enrichment," Hook said.
Hook said that the objective is pursuing the so-called "123 agreements" with other nations in the region and commended partners, including the United Arab Emirates, for entering into the agreement.
Tensions between United States and Iran around the latter's nuclear program re-emerged after the United States unilaterally withdrew from the Joint Comprehensive Plan of Action (JCPOA) - better known as the Iran nuclear deal - and reintroduced sanctions on Tehran in 2018.
Section 123 of the United States Atomic Energy Act of 1954 delineates the conditions and outlines the processes for nuclear cooperation between the United States and other nations. The agreement does not cover uranium enrichment and any further discussion on the topic must be separately negotiated with the United States.
In July 2015, Iran signed a nuclear agreement - the Joint Comprehensive Plan of Action (JCPOA), also known as the Iran nuclear deal - 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.
