US to Lose Most from JCPOA Withdrawal: Leader’s Aide

A senior advisor to Leader of the Islamic Revolution Ayatollah Seyyed Ali Khamenei says the United States stands to suffer the most after its move to withdraw from a multilateral nuclear deal signed between Iran and major world powers in 2015, Press TV reported.

Ali Akbar Velayati, the Leader’s advisor on international affairs, made the remarks while speaking to reporters following a meeting with Turkmenistan’s Foreign Minister Rashid Meredov in Tehran on Saturday, a few days after US President Donald Trump defied protests and last-minute lobbying by his European partners and unilaterally decided to withdraw from the historic nuclear accord, officially known as the Joint Comprehensive Plan of Action (JCPOA), and impose new sanctions on Tehran.

 Velayati said, “The Islamic Republic of Iran fully protects its independence and will by no means bow to their (Americans’) bullying and we have proved this over the past 40 years.”

He added that Trump had “disrespected international regulations and other members of the P5+1 group” by pulling the United States out of the nuclear agreement.

He emphasized that the US withdrawal from the JCPOA proved that the country easily violated international regulations and its commitments vis-à-vis countries and that it cannot be trusted at all.

The senior Iranian official said some countries concur with the US policy of bullying just because of their governments’ lack of confidence.

He warned Europe against pursuing the US policy on the nuclear deal with Iran and said such a move would harm Europe’s reputation rather than the Islamic Republic’s interests.

Velayati pointed to several cases of Washington’s violation of international treaties and agreements and said, “The Islamic Republic of Iran has the capability to stand up against Americans’ non-compliance and will boost its regional presence on a daily basis.”

Iran’s policies are consistent with those of regional states such as Iraq, Syria, Lebanon, Palestine and Yemen, he said, adding, “We defend and support regional dignity and standing of these countries and our presence in the region has been based on requests by these countries’ governments.”

Russia, Germany Committed to Iran Nuclear Deal

The Kremlin said on Friday that Russian President Vladimir Putin and German Chancellor Angela Merkel reaffirmed their commitment to preserving the landmark nuclear agreement despite the US move to pull out of it.

The Kremlin quoted a statement issued following the call as saying, “The importance of preserving the deal from a point of view of international and regional stability was highlighted.”

US nuclear expert resigns after Trump violates Iran deal

 A top American nuclear expert has handed his resignation to President Donald Trump after Washington’s unilateral withdrawal from the Iran nuclear agreement this week.

Richard Johnson, the assistant coordinator for Iran nuclear issues at the Office of Nuclear Implementation, stepped down without giving an explanation.

Johnson had worked as a non-proliferation officer in the US State Department since 2006

He had been involved in Washington’s weeks-long negotiations with the United Kingdom, France and Germany, during which the European governments, strived to salvage the agreement.

In an email circulated to his colleagues and staff, Johnson has described the Iran deal “an extraordinary achievement.”

“I am proud to have played a small part in this work, particularly the extraordinary achievement of implementing the [deal] with Iran,” he wrote.

The report of Johnson’s resignation came a day after the United Nations’ top nuclear inspector unexpectedly stepped down without giving any explanation.

The International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) announced late Friday that Tero Varjoranta had stepped down.

Varjoranta had been a deputy director general of the IAEA and head of its Department of Safeguards, which verifies countries’ compliance with the nuclear Non-Proliferation Treaty, since October 2013.

Following Trump’s unlawful withdrawal from the deal, the IAEA said that Iran was still implementing its commitments under the deal, defending it as “a gain for nuclear verification.”

H.M