“Yes, we would have definitely done so,” said Zarif in a radio interview on Saturday, when asked if he would have still carried on with the nuclear negotiations in 2015 if he had known back then that the US was going to withdraw from it three years later.
“The reason is that I believe the JCPOA has shown the true face of Iran and the US to the world,” Zarif added. “The agreement took the resolutions of Chapter VII of the UN Charter off Iran’s shoulder. It broke the global consensus against Iran, and destroyed the fabricated image of the country as a security threat to the world.”
That Iran has managed to do something that the US President Trump would call a ‘horrible one-sided deal’ is because the JCPOA has been designed in a way that has foiled the US’ several-decade long plots to disrepute Iran on the international scene, said Zarif, adding that the nuclear deal was more than an economic agreement.
“I am certain that I would have still carried on with nuclear negotiations even if I had known back then that an administration such as Mr. Trump’s would come to power in the US,” Zarif stressed.
Asked whether US’ approach toward Iran would change in the light of the new composition in the Congress, Zarif said “there will surely be new developments, but Iran has never defined its policies based on the US’ internal affairs.”
Zarif then highlighted the importance of getting off the FATF blacklist, saying in case of controversies, Iran could leave the FATF but still continue its cooperation with the task force.
About EU’s slow progress in bringing into effect a special financial mechanism to facilitate trade with Iran in the face of US sanctions, Zarif said Iran is in constant contact with Europe about the issue, adding “we are putting pressure on them and report the result of our efforts to the country’s officials. So far, our efforts have been effective and we have managed to keep the EU on our side. We will continue with this approach through the use of various mechanisms inside and outside the JCPOA.”
MS/4453936