France, UK, Germany to Stick to Iran Deal Irrespective of US Decision

“We are determined to save this deal because this accord safeguards against nuclear proliferation and is the right way to stop Iran getting a nuclear weapon,” French Foreign Minister Jean-Yves Le Drian told reporters in Berlin.

The corresponding position has been voiced by Foreign Minister Heiko Maas:

“We continue to believe that this agreement makes the world safer and without this agreement, the world would be less safe,” Maas stated during a joint news conference with his French counterpart, adding that “a failure would result in an escalation.”

Iranian Position

Tehran is ready to respond harshly to the United States if the latter decides to drop the Joint Comprehensive Plan of Action (JCPOA), otherwise known as the Iran nuclear deal, Iranian Foreign Ministry spokesman Bahram Qassemi said Monday.

“US pulling out of the JCPOA is a difficult matter, Iran’s response to this step will be unimaginable and pretty painful for the United States,” Qassemi said, as cited by the IRIB broadcaster.

The spokesman continued that in case if Washington decided to drop the deal, it would be a turning point in bilateral relations, which would also contribute to further mistrust in the current US administration.

Tehran will not exit the deal before any other party, but it has already worked out a series of possible options to respond to Washington if it chose to do so first, Qassemi added.

Iran Nuclear Deal

The situation around the JCPOA, also known as the Iran nuclear deal, had become tense last year, since the election of US President Donald Trump, who has been criticizing the diplomatic victory of his predecessor ever since his presidential campaign. The US president has repeatedly threatened to pull out of the agreement by not extending sanction waivers when they expire on May 12 unless all its “flaws” are corrected by Congress and Brussels.

The EU leaders have tried to persuade the US president to stay in the deal numerous times, but Donald Trump has been insisting that the document is “anti-Israeli.”

Commenting on the possibility of a US withdrawal on May 12, Bahram Qasemi, a spokesman for Iran’s Foreign Ministry stated that Tehran was prepared for all scenarios, reiterating the country’s stance that there would be no new agreement between Iran and Europe limiting Tehran’s regional influence.