US can only return to JCPOA if sanctions are lifted

The Foreign Ministry spokesman Saeed Khatibzadeh said: "In May 2018, the United States withdrew from Joint Comprehensive Plan of Action (JCPOA). The US withdrew from JCPOA and withdrew from JCPOA’s building and set explosive traps on the way out so that no one can stay in JCPOA and no one can enjoy the benefits of this agreement. We have made it clear how the United States can achieve this. The United States must act effectively and lift all the sanctions, and only then can it enter the JCPOA room and have its own dialogue under the JCPOA framework."

Khatibzadeh added "The root of many tensions and instabilities in the West Asian region goes back to the presence of foreign forces, especially the US forces. This is the path that the United States can take to accelerate the return of stability to the region by correcting its mistakes in West Asia.”

"We do not negotiate or compromise on our national security and defense capabilities, and everyone knows this. I do not need to repeat it again.”

Khatibzadeh also responded to a question about whether the United States could simply return to JCPOA, noting: "The United States left unilaterally. We do not have preconditions for lifting the sanctions, but lifting the sanctions is the way for the United States to return to the JCPOA.”

Referring to the parliament's law, Khatibzadeh noted: From tomorrow, the organization will stop the voluntary implementation of the Additional Protocol.

The spokesman also commented on Jake Sullivan's remarks, adding: "The situation of Iranians imprisoned in the United States has always been a priority for Iran, and many of our prisoners are in bad conditions in US prisons. The Iranian professor is handcuffed under false excuses, and the Iranian government cannot witness this blatant oppression of its own citizens. This is the sinister legacy of the previous US administration, and we have not yet seen distancing the new US administration from this sinister legacy."

Khatibzadeh also said in response to another question: "We are considering the offer of an EU coordinator, and what is certain is that the United States is not in a position to participate in JCPOA as long as it does not lift sanctions."

Holding a trilateral meeting between Iran, the Republic of Azerbaijan, and Turkey is on the agenda, according to Khatibzadeh.

Asked about Grossi's visit, the spokesman said: "What happened between the Atomic Energy Organization and the IAEA was a technical agreement that in the framework of the parliamentary law, the relations between Iran and the IAEA should not be damaged.”

In response to another question, the Foreign Ministry spokesman said: "The path that the United States must take is to lift sanctions, and this path will facilitate the path of the United States to return to the JCPOA. We announced our position about the prisoners through Switzerland.”

END