Publish Date: 22 January 2020 - 12:21

TEHRAN, Jan. 22 (MNA) – Iranian FM Mohammad Javad Zarif in a tweet on Wednesday warned the E3 that by selling their integrity and losing ground, they are whetting Trump's appetite.

"Sorry to say I told you so: When E3 sold out remnants of JCPOA to avoid Trump tariffs last week, I warned that it would only whet his appetite," Zarif said.

"After selling their integrity and losing any moral/legal ground, ANOTHER tariff threat. EU would do better to exert its sovereignty," he added.

Last week, France, Britain, and Germany announced their decision to trigger the dispute mechanism in the 2015 Iran nuclear deal, known as the Joint Comprehensive Plan of Action (JCPOA) - a step that could lead to the restoration of UN sanctions against the Islamic Republic.

The E3 said the measure was in response to Iran's reductions of its commitments to the JCPOA, which in turn was a reaction to the US’ withdrawal from the nuclear deal and EU’s failure to find practical ways to shield mutual trade from the US sanctions.

Chief of Atomic Energy Organization of Iran (AEOI) Ali Akbar Salehi has strongly criticized the decision by E3 to trigger a dispute settlement mechanism featured in the 2015 nuclear deal with Iran, also called the Joint Comprehensive Plan of Action.

“I believe the Europeans have shown their weakness and lack of wisdom and that they cannot resist the US’ pressures,” Salehi said on Wednesday.

MNA/