TEHRAN – The envoys of Britain, France and Germany to Tehran were summoned to the Iranian Foreign Ministry on Thursday to strongly protest the three European countries for colluding with the United States in abusing the UN Security Council mechanism by holding a closed-door session on Iran’s peaceful nuclear program.

The Foreign Ministry Director General for Peace and International Security said the move is “irresponsible” and “provocative”.

The three European countries, though party to the 2015 nuclear agreement, have refused to honor their obligations under the accord to lift sanctions on Iran.

The United States quit the nuclear agreement, officially known as the Joint Comprehensive Plan of Action (JCPOA), in May 2018 in violation of UN Security Council resolution 2231 and reinstated sanctions.

The Foreign Ministry official reminded these points to the diplomats from the three European countries:

Iran's peaceful nuclear program is fully compliant with its rights and obligations under the nuclear Non-Proliferation Treaty (NPT) and the Safeguards Agreement. Iran's nuclear activities also do not conflict with the JCPOA, a document that includes Iran's voluntary confidence-building measures in exchange for the lifting of unjust and illegal sanctions since under the agreement (paragraph 36), Iran is entitled to partially or fully suspend its commitments in response to violations by the other parties.

The convening of a closed meeting of the Security Council regarding Iran's nuclear program lacks any technical or legal justification and is considered a provocative and political act in line with the unilateral and tension-inducing approaches of the United States.

The compliance of the three European countries with the unfounded request from the United States to hold a Security Council meeting signifies their alignment with a party that, through its unilateral and illegal withdrawal from the JCPOA in blatant violation of Security Council resolution 2231, has been the cause of subsequent adverse developments regarding the agreement.

While just a few days ago, a meeting of the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) Board of Governors took place where countries expressed their views and positions regarding Iran's nuclear issue, holding a Security Council meeting on Iran’s peaceful nuclear program represents a form of destructive interference that undermines the technical mission of the IAEA and jeopardizes the normal cooperation between Iran and the Agency.