Iran is counting on the United States under Joe Biden to unconditionally return and honor its obligations in the Joint Comprehensive Plan of Action (JCPOA) nuclear deal.
The deal was originally negotiated by former president, Barack Obama.
Majid Takht Ravanchi, Iran's ambassador and permanent representative to the U.N., said the country had already received positive signs from the Biden camp. He told the Islamic Republic News Agency: "We have heard from the Biden team a number of positive remarks regarding the JCPOA and the return of the U.S. to its obligations based on it."
However, Takht Ravanchi said it is "too early to judge" Biden's next moves and that "Iran is not in a rush." He remarked: "We have to wait until Biden announces his position with regard to the JCPOA and the implementation of the deal. We have to give him time."
The envoy said that the actual implementation of what the U.S. has agreed to do based on the nuclear agreement is more important for Iran.
Takht Ravanchi noted that the U.S. has been "in violation of its obligations" since the first day of the JCPOA, which covered both the Obama and Trump administrations. The violations which the ambassador dubbed as a flouting of "international law [and] international regulations" culminated with the U.S. withdrawal from the deal in 2018.
According to the ambassador, "the whole international community expects the U.S. to live up to its commitments and its promises."
The U.S. is planning to fulfill its end of the bargain after President Trump withdrew from the JCPOA in 2018
President Donald Trump withdrew from the JCPOA deal with Iran in 2018. It was among his promises during his 2016 presidential campaign. "This was a horrible, one-sided deal that should have not even been made. It didn't bring calm, it didn't bring peace and it never will," the president said at that time.
Trump's withdrawal from the agreement dealt a blow to his predecessor's deal with the Middle Eastern country. The 2015 agreement aims to ease sanctions imposed on Iran with one caveat: The country should downsize its nuclear program.
Trump also slammed Obama for sending vast sums of cash to a "regime of great terror," noting that the money enabled further terrorism and violence in the Middle East. (Related: Health Ranger warned in 2017 that Obama was a "sleeper cell" committing treason with Iran.)
According to Takht Ravanchi, the U.S.-imposed sanctions have "undoubtedly created problems for Iran and its people." However, he noted that the country had been working to reduce the economic pressure and cope with the current situation.
Tehran's Jan. 15 announcement is not the first time it has tried to reopen the JCPOA deal. In September 2019, it announced that it would honor the agreement if it could sell its oil stocks in the open market or get "$15 billion over four months." Trump firmly rejected Iran's proposal. (Related: Trump confirms that Obama's schemes PAID for the missiles fired by Iran against U.S. targets.)
Takht Ravanchi commented: "It is very difficult to predict what will happen to the JCPOA in the future. We hope that we keep in place … [and] that the JCPOA can survive."
Iran is not exactly holding its end of the bargain. Government Spokesman Ali Rabiei told Iranian state media earlier this month that the country has started the process of producing 20 percent enriched uranium at the Fordow underground facility.
The International Atomic Energy Agency confirmed the activities in Fordow. Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said Iran's moves in Fordow were aimed at developing nuclear weapons. He added that Israel would not allow Iran to create such armaments.
Visit Terrorism.news to read more about the Obama administration's dealings with Iran.
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