Tokyo, May 16 (UNI) Japanese Foreign Minister Taro Kono on Thursday called on Tehran to preserve the Iran nuclear deal, despite the United States' decision to withdraw from the agreement and tighten economic sanctions.
This was done to ensure the peaceful nature of the country’s nuclear program in exchange for the lifting of western sanctions, in the wake of Tehran’s decision to suspend some of its obligations under the deal.
On Thursday, Kono met with Iranian Foreign Minister Mohammad Javad Zarif. The meeting followed the reported discontinuation of some of Iran’s commitments under the nuclear deal, formally known as the Joint Comprehensive Plan of Action (JCPOA), on the same day, reports Sputnik.
Zarif expressed hope that Japan, a key US ally known for maintaining amicable ties with Iran, and other partners, will take "practical measures in order to maintain this valuable international agreement."
Since President Donald Trump ordered the unilateral withdrawal of the United States from the agreement, signed by his predecessor Barack Obama, Washington has reinstated sanctions on Iran and ramped up pressure, recently sending an aircraft carrier strike group to the Persian Gulf.
The escalation followed the US decision to withdraw from the multilateral deal in May 2018. China, France, Germany, Iran, Russia, the United Kingdom, and the European Union— the other signatories to the Iran nuclear deal — slammed Washington's withdrawal from the agreement and the reinstatement of sanctions, saying it threatened not only Iran but also countries and companies that continued to do business with Tehran.
UNI XC ASN 1056