TEHRAN – Iranian Deputy Foreign Minister Abbas Araqchi said in Moscow on Friday that maintaining his country’s interests is more important than saving “an “agreement”, meaning the 2015 nuclear deal.

Araqchi made the comments on the sidelines of an international conference on nuclear non-proliferation in Moscow. 

“No country is uncertain about Iran’s goodwill in saving the JCPOA (the Joint Comprehensive Plan of Action)… however no one should have any doubt that if Iran cannot reap the JCPOA benefits, it will continue scaling down commitments,” the senior diplomat underscored. 

Araqchi, a leading nuclear negotiator who helped craft the JCPOA with great powers, said Iran has “vividly proven its determination to the nuclear deal undertakings” but at the same, it has shown that it is firm to modify its “obligations if the other signatories”  fail to “fulfill their commitments”. 

He added, “Iran has given enough time to diplomacy and if the situation remains unchanged, Tehran will continue the path of reduction of obligations.” 

He further said, “A large number of countries, including those which have participated in the current international conference have condemned the U.S. unilateralism.” 

“(The U.S. withdrawal from) the JCPOA is now a symbol of an international movement condemning the U.S. unilateralism,” Araqchi explained.  

MJ/PA