Mikhail Ulyanov in a Saturday tweet wrote, "3 years ago today #US withdrew from #JCPOA and started maximum pressure policy. It resulted in undermining the nuclear deal, advancement of the Iranian nuclear programme and deterioration in P.Gulf. Fiasco."
"Now possible return of US to JCPOA is on the agenda of the Vienna talks," he added.
Former US President Donald Trump, after exit from the world powers' nuclear deal with Iran in May 2018, pursued a policy of "maximum pressure" in addition to reinstating the sanctions suspended under the agreement and imposing new sanctions. He also resorted to provocative policies against Iran, such as the assassination of Lt. Gen. Qassem Soleimani, the former commander of the IRGC's Quds Force.
Trump's theory was that these policies could force the Islamic Republic of Iran to negotiate a new agreement instead of the JCPOA. Trump has been widely criticized by his critics for his lack of a strategy for Iran, the escalation of tensions with the country, and the separation of the United States from its allies.
Despite early promises during his presidential campaign, US President Joe Biden has not returned his country to the deal so far. By doing so, the Biden administration is following in the Trump administration's footsteps and continues to stick to the illegal sanctions on Iran in violation of the nuclear deal. Washington has set illegitimate preconditions for returning to the JCPOA which are strongly rejected by Iran.
After the US withdrawal from the deal and imposing the unprecedented sanctions on the Iranian nation which was followed by the indifference of the European parties to the need for compensating Iran's losses as a result of the US violations of the international accord, Iran started reducing its JCPOA commitments in five steps and finally suspended voluntary implementation of the Additional Protocol on February 22. Tehran recently started 60% enrichment after an "act of sabotage" done reportedly carried out by the Israeli regime on one of its nuclear sites in Natanz. The JCPOA Paragraph 36 allows Iran to diminish its abidance in the case of violations of the deal by other parties.
Regardless of the fact that the United States has violated its obligations in the JCPOA, hours earlier, a White House spokesman, reiterated that sanctions would only be lifted if Iran "returned" to its obligations to the JCPOA.
Iran has vowed that it will change course and will return immediately to its JCPOA commitments as soon as other parties, most notably the Europeans, abide by the provisions of the accord.
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