US sanctions make nuke deal ‘untenable’: Iran official

By Ahmet Dursun

ANKARA

Iran’s deputy foreign minister said Tuesday that recently re-imposed U.S. sanctions had served to make his country’s 2015 nuclear deal with world powers “untenable”, warning that Tehran itself could withdraw from the agreement.

Abbas Araqchi described the 2015 deal as a “great political achievement”, reiterating Iran’s commitment to complying with the deal’s terms, Iran’s state-run IRNA news agency reported.

Iran and the P5+1 group of nations (the five permanent UN Security Council members plus Germany) signed the deal in July of 2015.

“But the U.S. sanctions, which have been re-imposed despite the International Atomic Energy Agency’s confirmation that Iran has complied with the deal’s terms, have made the agreement much less beneficial,” Araqchi told IRNA.

“The recent re-imposition of sanctions has brought revenue accruing to Iran as a result of the deal almost to zero,” Araqchi lamented.

Tensions between Washington and Tehran have mounted since when U.S. President Donald Trump unilaterally withdrew his country from the 2015 agreement.

In August, the U.S. re-imposed round of sanctions that mainly targeted Iran’s banking sector.

phase of sanctions -- targeting Iran’s energy sector -- came into effect on Nov. 5, although Washington granted a 180-day reprieve to the eight largest buyers of Iranian oil, including Turkey.