TEHRAN – Foreign Ministry spokesman Saeed Khatibzadeh has called on European parties to the Iran nuclear deal to prove their goodwill by fulfilling their commitments under the 2015 deal, officially known as the Joint Comprehensive Plan of Action (JCPOA).

“A new opportunity has been created to continue the previous correct path,” Khatibzadeh said in an online press conference, making a vague reference to the election of Joe Biden as the new president of the United States.

“The other side should return to the fulfillment of its obligations and Iran too will fulfill its obligations as it has announced,” he said.

The JCPOA was signed between Iran, six world powers - the U.S., the UK, France, Russia, China, Germany - and the European Union in July 2015. The pact was ditched by U.S. President Donald Trump in 2018 in pursuit of a “maximum pressure” campaign against Iran.

Trump’s withdrawal came while Iran was in full compliance with the treaty. All other parties to the deal have repeatedly criticized the Trump administration’s policy toward Iran.

Biden’s victory in the November 3 presidential election raised hopes over the prospects of a re-entry into the JCPOA by the incoming administration.

During his Monday presser, Khatibzadeh asked to comment on recent remarks by German Foreign Minister Heiko Maas, who called for negotiations with Iran to conclude a broader nuclear deal next year.

“Iran’s stances regarding Barjam (JCPOA) is fixed and unchanged,” said Khatibzadeh.

He said the nuclear accord has already been negotiated, signed and inserted into the UN Security Council Resolution 2231.

Iran will not renegotiate something that has already been negotiated, he added.

Earlier this month, Maas told weekly Der Spiegel that it was in the interest of the U.S. and Europeans to reach a broader agreement with Tehran.

“A return to the previous agreement will not be adequate in any case,” he said, referring to the 2015 nuclear agreement.

“There should be a kind of a ‘nuclear agreement plus’ deal, which is also in the interest of us,” Maas added.

Maas expressed hope that Biden would change Washington’s policy on Iran after taking office next month, and pave the way for talks on the nuclear deal.

“It is important to send out a signal, which would be decisive, on whether or not the United States would relax economic sanctions on Iran. Both sides should move forward, come closer. Time is running out because Iran will have presidential elections next year,” he said.

Khatibzadeh said the European parties to the deal, including France, Britain and Germany, have not fulfilled their commitments under the JCPOA.

The spokesman asserted that Iran will neither negotiate nor compromise on issues relating to its national security, stressing that Iran’s is fully aware of its rights and duties as well as those of the other sides.

“What was not achieved through maximum pressure will not be achieved through other approaches,” he added.

MH/PA