TEHRAN – The IAEA board of governors met on Wednesday at the request of the United States as Iran is reducing its commitments in response to the U.S. abrogation of the nuclear deal (JCPOA) and the return of sanctions.

Irony of IAEA Board meeting on US request:
a. US abhors JCPOA, axed & violates it, and punishes all who observe it;
b. US has no standing to raise JCPOA issues;
c. Iran fully complied with JCPOA per 15 IAEA reports;
d. Iran's actions are lawful under para 36 of accord: pic.twitter.com/UOr316AZnx

— Javad Zarif (@JZarif) July 10, 2019

Iranian Foreign Minister Mohammad Javad Zarif said the U.S. is not in a position to talk about the JCPOA.

 “The U.S. has no standing to raise JCPOA issues,” Zarif tweeted.

The Trump administration killed the JCPOA in May 2018 and has imposed the toughest ever sanctions on Iran. Trump has used the worst language against the JCPOA.

Zarif said Iran has been fully committed to the agreement and it has been verified by 15 reports issued by the International Atomic Energy Agency.

Zarif added Iran is limiting its commitments based on the paragraph 36 of the JCPOA.

“Iran's actions are lawful under para 36 of accord,” Zarif stated.

(Paragraph 36 provided a mechanism to resolve disputes and allows one side, under certain circumstances, to stop complying with the deal if the other side is out of compliance.)

Iran is reducing its commitments to the JCPOA after the passage of a year as the remaining parties to the deal, including the European Union, have failed to shield Iran from the United States’ sanctions.