US renews Iran sanctions waivers for nuclear work
The administration of US President Donald Trump has renewed three key waivers that will allow European allies, Russia and China to cooperate with Iran on civil nuclear programs.
The waivers, which were due to expire Saturday, are being extended for 90 days, Assistant Secretary of State Christopher Ford told Bloomberg on Friday.
The waiver extensions pertain to the Bushehr nuclear power plant, the Fordow enrichment facility, the Arak nuclear complex and the Tehran Research Reactor, a senior US official said, on condition of anonymity.
Meanwhile, the official added that two other waivers, one that allowed Iran to store surplus heavy water in Oman and the other that allowed Russia to process Iranian uranium, would not be renewed.
On May 8, 2018, Trump announced that he would abandon the Joint Comprehensive Plan of Action (JCPOA), reached between Iran and six world powers – the US, the UK, France, Russia, China and Germany.
Under the JCPOA, Iran agreed to limit parts of its peaceful nuclear program in exchange for the removal of all nuclear-related sanctions.
In August, Trump ordered all nuclear-related sanctions that were removed under the deal to be reinstated immediately.
The new decision comes after the Trump administration took other steps to crack down on Iran. Trump said in a statement on April 22 that, in a bid to reduce Iran's oil exports to zero, buyers of Iranian oil must stop purchases by May 1 or face sanctions.
The move ended six months of waivers, which allowed Iran’s eight biggest buyers -- Turkey, China, Greece, India, Italy, Japan, South Korea and Taiwan -- to continue importing limited volumes.
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