TEHRAN - Peter Jenkins, a former British ambassador to the International Atomic Energy Agency, has said that the United States has gained no benefit by withdrawing from the 2015 nuclear deal, officially known as the JCPOA.

Jenkins told IRNA in an interview published on Saturday that the U.S. lost its soft power after pullout from the JCPOA.

He also noted that the U.S. may return to the JCPOA if Trump fails to be reelected president in the November elections.

The former diplomat added Iran has gained no economic benefits from the nuclear deal.

Donald Trump unilaterally quit the nuclear deal in May 2018 and introduced the harshest ever sanctions in history on Iran as part of his administration’s “maximum pressure” strategy against Iran.

‘U.S. cannot expect extension of arms embargo on Iran’

Jenkins also said the United States cannot expect the UN Security Council to extend arms embargo on Iran within the framework of UN Security Council Resolution 2231, which endorses the JCPOA.

He noted that China and Russia have the right to veto the U.S. move.

The Trump administration has also stepped up calls for the extension of UN arms embargo on Iran. The administration has threatened that it may seek to trigger a snapback of UN sanctions on Iran if its attempts to extend the arms embargo fail.

Under the JCPOA backed by Resolution 2231, the UN must lift its arms embargo on Iran five years after the implementation of the nuclear deal. Despite its withdrawal from the JCPOA, the U.S. is pushing for the extension of the arms embargo, which is scheduled to expire on October 18.

NA/PA