Germany still committed to Iran nuclear diplomacy

By Oliver Towfigh Nia

BERLIN (AA) - Germany said on Friday it remained committed to a diplomatic resolution of the Iranian nuclear dispute following the announcement of Britain, France and Germany that they would retain ballistic missile and nuclear proliferation-related sanctions on the Islamic Republic that were set to expire in October under the 2015 Iran nuclear deal

“It is very important for us to emphasize that we continue to advocate for a diplomatic solution. That is, so to speak, we are not triggering additional sanctions or triggering the snapback mechanism, but the situation remains as it is at the moment,” German Foreign Ministry Spokesman Christian Wagner said at a press briefing in Berlin.

He accused Tehran of having “violated its obligations” of the Iran nuclear accord -- commonly known as the Joint Comprehensive Plan of Action (JCPoA) -- for over four years.

“It is Iran that is violating the JCPoA. We always stuck to the agreement,” Wagner said.

He reiterated that Iran’s nuclear actions remained a source of “concern.”

“We view this development with concern. I think it is fundamentally important to note that we view the nuclear steps that Iran is taking with great concern. It is Iran that is violating the JCPoA. We always stuck to the agreement.”

The UK, France, and Germany criticized Iran for violating its commitment regarding the enrichment of uranium.

The three European countries gave a joint statement to the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) on Iran’s implementation of its JCPoA commitments on Wednesday.

“Regrettably, Iran’s actions remain in clear violation of its JCPoA commitments and stated intentions,” the statement read, adding that Tehran continued escalating its nuclear program to "an alarming level clearly beyond credible civilian justification."

They also noted that Iran fell short of its transparency commitments.

“The IAEA reports show Iran has continued to accumulate enriched uranium far beyond JCPoA limits, at 5%, 20% and, most alarming, at 60%. This means that the weight of Iran’s enriched uranium stockpile is now over 18 times the amount permitted under the JCPoA,” the three countries stressed.

They vowed to take diplomatic steps to "prevent Iran from developing nuclear weapons."

The JCPoA was signed in 2015 between Iran and the P5+1, the five permanent members of the UN Security Council, China, France, Russia, the UK, and the US, plus Germany together with the EU.

Under the agreement, Tehran has committed itself to limit its nuclear activity to civilian purposes, and in return, world powers agreed to drop their economic sanctions against Iran.​​​​​​​