TEHRAN - Iranian Foreign Minister Hossein Amir Abdollahian said on Wednesday that Tehran is reviewing the U.S. response to the European Union draft proposal aimed at reviving the 2015 nuclear deal, officially called the JCPOA, but stressed the importance of "stronger guarantees" from the American side. 

"We have received the American side's last text, and my colleagues are closely studying the response with the required [level of] rigor and speed," Amir Abdollahian said at a joint press conference with Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov, according to Press TV.

Tehran needs "stronger text and stronger guarantees" to wrap up the negotiations that started in April 2021 to revive the pact and to lift sanctions on Iran.

The European Union, which acts as the coordinator in indirect talks between Tehran and Washington, recently came up with a draft proposal to revive the deal. Tehran offered its response, which EU foreign policy chief Josep Borrel called "reasonable". 

The U.S. took several weeks to offer its response to Iran's comments, which is currently under review in Iran.
Amir Abdollahian said an agreement would not be out of reach if the U.S. acts "realistically" and the present text is reinforced.

"Our purpose is the conclusion of a good, strong, and lasting agreement," he stressed. 

Iran urges IAEA to stick to its ‘technical duty’

Foreign Minister Amir Abdollahian also criticized the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA), urging the international body to stick to its "technical duty", and drop the "political behavior" towards Iran’s nuclear program.

The IAEA has accused Iran of non-cooperation, a charge Tehran has vehemently rejected as "baseless".

Iran has repeatedly called on the IAEA to honor its technical duties, warning it against being influenced by the Israeli regime.

Amir Abdollahian said he also discussed the status of bilateral relations with Lavrov, including Iran's commercial, economic, transit, defensive, and security relations with Russia.
"We are pleased that the countries' relations are (moving) in the right direction," the top Iranian diplomat remarked.

He also said a roadmap devising the path ahead of the countries' strategic relations would be implemented "in the near future" following ratification by the nations' respective parliaments.

Iranian, Russian payment systems to be connected

The Russian foreign minister also announced that the Iranian and Russian payment systems of Shetab and Mir would be connected "in the near future," saying the countries had discussed the prospect on the central bank governor level.