TEHRAN, Iran (AP) – Iran’s supreme leader on Sunday called on the United States to lift all sanctions if it wants Iran to live up to commitments made in its nuclear deal with world powers, state television reported, its first comments on the matter since the president of the United States. USA Joe Biden took office.
“If (the US) wants Iran to return to its commitments, they should lift all sanctions in practice, then we will do the verification … then we will return to our commitments,” said Ayatollah Ali Khamenei, according to state TV.
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Former President Donald Trump unilaterally withdrew the U.S. in 2018 from the atomic deal, which saw Iran agree to limit its uranium enrichment in exchange for lifting economic sanctions. Biden said he would try to resume the agreement, but insisted that Iran must first reverse its nuclear steps, creating a dispute of wills between nations.
In this photo released by the official website of the office of the Iranian supreme leader, Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei speaks during a meeting with the army air force and air defense personnel in Tehran, Iran, Sunday, February 7, 2021. (Office of the Iranian supreme leader via AP)
“This is the Islamic Republic’s definitive and irreversible policy, and all officials in the country are unanimous about it, and no one will deviate from it,” added Khamenei on Sunday, reiterating earlier statements by Iranian leaders that the US should ease its sanctions. before Iran returns to obey.
The supreme leader, 81, has the final say on all state issues in Iran and has approved efforts to reach the nuclear deal in 2015.
In response to Trump’s so-called “maximum pressure” campaign against Iran, the country gradually began to violate its atomic commitments and threatened further provocation in an attempt to increase its influence and get Biden to prioritize the return of the agreement as it moves forward to dismantle Trump’s legacy. Biden signed a series of executive actions that reverse the course on a wide range of issues, including climate change and immigration.
After last December’s assassination of an Iranian scientist responsible for leading the country’s dismantled military nuclear program, the Iranian parliament passed a law to block international nuclear inspectors later this month – a serious breach of the agreement.
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Iran has also started enriching uranium close to levels suitable for weapons and said it will experiment with uranium metals, a key component of a nuclear warhead. The country announced its measures and insisted that all violations of the pact are easily reversible. Tehran says its nuclear program is for peaceful purposes only.