TEHRAN— The Chinese foreign ministry spokesman has said the United States should make up for its mistakes concerning the Islamic Republic and the Joint Comprehensive Plan of Action (JCPOA), the official name for the 2015 nuclear deal.

The U.S. is the source of problems related to the 2015 nuclear deal. 

Zhao Lijian, China's spokesman and Deputy Director of the Foreign Ministry Information Department, emphasized that the nuclear accord protects the international community's common interests.

The Chinese envoy mentioned the recent indirect talks between American and Iranian negotiators in the Qatari capital Doha, expressing optimism that the U.S. and Iran will continue diplomatic efforts to reach an agreement on remaining issues in order to remove hurdles to complete compliance with the JCPOA.

He urged the U.S., which caused the current crisis, to make reparations and actively respond to Iran's legal concerns.
According to the Chinese diplomat, the U.S. is expected to make every effort to reach an agreement on the resurrection of the JCPOA as soon as feasible.

On Tuesday and Wednesday, the European Union mediated indirect negotiations between the United States and Iran in Doha.

Following the indirect talks, Iran's Foreign Minister Hossein Amir Abdollahian thanked Qatar for holding the meetings in a phone call with his Qatari counterpart Mohammed bin Abdulrahman bin Jassim Al-Thani.

On Saturday, Iran's foreign minister urged other parties to the 2015 nuclear deal to abandon their double standards in order to establish a good and durable agreement on the deal’s renewal.

In May 2018, the Trump administration unilaterally withdrew from the nuclear agreement and re-imposed sanctions on Iran.

In April 2021, Tehran and the remaining parties to the deal, which includes Russia, China, the United Kingdom, France, and Germany, began talks to resurrect the JCPOA, holding multiple rounds of negotiations in Vienna, Austria, with the U.S. participating indirectly.

However, though most technical issues have been resolved Washington has failed to make a political decision to guarantee Iran’s dividends from possible revival of the agreement.

Tehran points out that the nuclear talks should result in a verifiable lifting of sanctions because Iran has met its commitments under the JCPOA, but the other parties have not taken any concrete steps to open global markets to Iran and provide Iranians with the financial and economic benefits of the deal.

In a Thursday meeting of the United Nations Security Council meeting, the ambassadors of the United States, UK, France, Germany and other Washington’s friends repeated their hollow and baseless claims against Iran’s intentions, claiming that Iran does not want the JCPOA to be revived. 

In the same meeting, Iran’s ambassador Majid Takht Ravanchi outlined Tehran’s positions and what has been done in the most perfect manner. 

“Iran's nuclear ‘escalation’ is a remedial measure meant to compel U.S., UK and other JCPOA participants to abide by their obligations, the violation of which in fact undermined international peace and security and the non-proliferation regime,” Takht Ravanchi noted, adding, “Our negotiating team is ready to engage constructively again to conclude and reach a deal. The ball is in U.S. court and if the U.S. acts realistically and shows its serious intention to implement its obligations, the agreement is not out of reach.”