Iran will continue reducing nuclear commitments: Leader

Ayatollah Khamenei says U.S. policy of maximum pressure has failed 

TEHRAN - Leader of the Islamic Revolution Ayatollah Seyyed Ali Khamenei said on Wednesday that Iran will continue to reduce commitments under the 2015 nuclear deal, known as the Joint Comprehensive Plan of Action.

“Reducing nuclear commitments, for which the Atomic Energy Organization is responsible, should continue seriously and precisely as it was announced by the government till it reaches favorable result and it will definitely reach the result,” Ayatollah Khamenei said during a meeting with the High Council of the Commanders of the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps.

The Leader also said the United States’ policy of “maximum pressure” against Iran has ended in failure.

“They imagined Iran would be forced to show flexibility if they applied policy of maximum pressure. With the help of God, they understand that the maximum pressure has caused problems for themselves,” the Leader stated.

The Leader describes sanctions on Iran’s oil sale as a “short term problem”.Referring to President Hassan Rouhani’s visit to the annual UN summit in New York last week, the Leader said, “Recently, they (the U.S.) made unfruitful efforts with the help of their European friends to form a symbolic show of Iran’s surrender and to make the Iranian president to meet with them. However, Iran will continue reducing nuclear commitments seriously and determinedly till reaching favorable result.”

U.S. President Donald Trump, who quit the nuclear deal in May 2018 and imposed the harshest ever sanctions on Tehran, has been repeatedly calling for dialogue with Iran.

On May 8, exactly one year after the U.S. abandoned the deal, Tehran began to partially reduce its commitments to the agreement at bi-monthly intervals.

In the first stage, Iran announced that it will not limit its stockpile of the nuclear fuel to 300 kilograms allowed under the deal. However, on that date (May 8) Iran’s Supreme National Security Council (SNSC) said if the remaining parties to the JCPOA, especially Europeans, devise a mechanism to protect it from the sanctions effect in the two-month deadline it will reverse its decision. 

But since European parties missed the deadline, on July 7 Iran announced that it has started enriching uranium to a higher purity than the 3.67%, thereby starting the second step.

As Europe missed the second 60-day deadline, Iran moved to take the third step, removing ban on nuclear research and development (R&D).

In a letter on September 5, Foreign Minister Mohammad Javad Zarif notified European Union foreign policy chief Federica Mogherini about Iran’s third step.

‘Relying on domestic capabilities is solution to problems’

Ayatollah Khamenei also said that relying on domestic capabilities is solution to economic problems.

He described sanctions on Iran’s oil sale as a “short term problem”.

If proper actions is taken, the country can reach a “long-term benefit” from this “short term problem” which is non-reliance on oil revenues, the Leader remarked.