Iran slams Europe for failure to meet nuclear deal terms

Iran has accused European signatories to the 2015 nuclear agreement of failing to uphold their commitments, following fresh threats from Britain, France, and Germany to reinstate sanctions over Tehran’s nuclear activities.

At a press conference on Monday, Iranian foreign ministry spokesperson Esmail Baqaei said that the European parties had shown negligence and failed to implement the agreement in good faith.

His comments come as tensions rise over Iran’s uranium enrichment levels and Western concerns that Tehran is no longer adhering to the nuclear deal’s core restrictions.

The 2015 Joint Comprehensive Plan of Action, JCPOA, was designed to limit Iran’s nuclear programme in return for sanctions relief.

The accord was signed by Iran, the five permanent members of the United Nations Security Council (China, France, Russia, the United Kingdom, and the United States), and Germany.

However, the deal began to collapse in 2018 when then-U.S. President Donald Trump unilaterally withdrew the United States from the agreement and reimposed sweeping sanctions on Iran.

While European signatories pledged to preserve the deal, they failed to deliver an effective economic mechanism to shield Iran from U.S. penalties. As a result, many international companies pulled out of Iran, intensifying its economic crisis.

“The European parties have been at fault and negligent in implementing the nuclear agreement,” Baqaei asserted.

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According to the International Atomic Energy Agency, Iran is currently enriching uranium up to 60 percent purity, far exceeding the 3.67 percent limit set by the JCPOA.

This level of enrichment brings Iran closer to weapons-grade material, which requires about 90 percent purity.

In recent weeks, the three European powers—commonly referred to as the E3—have considered triggering the UN’s “snapback” mechanism, which would reimpose all prior international sanctions on Iran, citing Iran’s continued violations.

However, Baqaei dismissed the move as “meaningless, unjustifiable and immoral.” He emphasized that Iran began rolling back its obligations only after the Western parties, especially the U.S. and Europe, failed to uphold their end of the bargain.

“Iran’s reduction of its commitments was carried out in accordance with the provisions outlined in the agreement,” Baqaei said.

He reiterated Iran’s stance that its uranium enrichment activities are peaceful and conducted within the framework of the JCPOA, arguing that Iran has acted transparently in response to external failures rather than initiating any breach.

As diplomatic efforts to revive the nuclear deal remain stalled, this latest blame game signals worsening relations between Iran and the European powers.

The prospect of renewed sanctions looms large, potentially deepening Iran’s isolation and exacerbating its internal economic woes.

Punch Newspaper