Iran Set to Suspend More Nuclear Commitments in Early Sept.: Russia

Russian Deputy Foreign Minister Sergei Ryabkov said Iran plans to begin suspending more of its commitments under the 2015 nuclear deal between Tehran and world powers in early September.

"Further we are in early September, with September 4-5 being a reference date, when Iran plans to take the third step to reduce its commitments as part of the less-for-less approach," Ryabkov said after a meeting between JCPOA parties in Vienna on Sunday, the Tass news agency reported.

The remaining parties to the deal - Britain, France, Germany, Russia, China, the EU and Iran - met for emergency talks in the Austrian capital.

"We called on the Iranians to refrain from that after all," he said, adding that it is necessary to see to it that Iran really has the economic possibilities that were provided by the deal and lost due to the US sanctions.

"Some parties think that Iran must get back to the implementation of its commitments in full without any additional reservations or conditions," the senior Russian official said. "But in the current situation, it looks absolutely unrealistic."

Ryabkov also said that the project for the modernization of the heavy water reactor at Iran’s Arak is nearing the equipment purchasing stage.

"Progress has been made on the Arak project," he said.

"It is not nominal. The stage of practical, purchasing activities is nearing. It is a separate question who will supply equipment there and what kind of equipment. But as a matter of fact, it is not a political question. It is a question to the designers."

In May 2018, US President Donald Trump pulled his country out of the JCPOA.

Iran and the remaining parties launched talks to save the JCPOA after the US withdrawal, but the three EU parties to the deal (France, Britain, and Germany) have failed to ensure Iran’s economic interests.

The EU’s inaction forced Tehran to stop honoring certain commitments to the nuclear deal, including a rise in the stockpile of enriched uranium.

Iran maintains that the new measures are not designed to harm the JCPOA but to save the accord by creating a balance in the commitments.