US Chose Most Dramatic Option on Iran’s Nuclear Program, Says Russian Diplomat

MOSCOW – The US has chosen the most dramatic and far-reaching options to act on Iran’s nuclear program, Russia’s Deputy Foreign Minister Sergei Ryabkov said after consultations in Tehran on Thursday.

“The Iranians and we are alarmed by what happened,” he said. “We think [our] worst fears have come true,” the diplomat said.

“Generally speaking, the US had a lot of other options to move on this issue there where they find it necessary, but the most dramatic and far-reaching was chosen,” Ryabkov stressed.

 UK Prime Minister Theresa May, French President Emmanuel Macron and German Chancellor Angela Merkel issued a joint statement in the wake of the US president’s announcement calling on all the other parties to the Joint Comprehensive Plan of Action (JCPOA) to stay committed to their obligations under the agreement.

Iranian President Hassan Rouhani reiterated his country’s commitment to the deal, saying Tehran would continue implementing its obligations under the JCPOA.

The Joint Comprehensive Plan of Action was signed between Iran and six international mediators (the United Kingdom, Germany, China, Russia, the United States, and France) on July 14, 2015.

Under the deal, Iran undertakes to curb its nuclear activities and place them under control of the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) in exchange of abandonment of the sanctions imposed previously by the United Nations Security Council, the European Union and the United States over its nuclear program.

TASS

R.S