Iran to resume nuclear programme ‘at much greater speed’ if US quits deal: Zarif

NEW YORK, Apr 22 (APP):Iran will resume its nuclear programme “at a much greater speed” if the United States withdraws from the landmark 2015 nuclear accord, Iranian Foreign Minister Javad Zarif has said.
“If the decision comes from President, Donald Trump to officially withdraw from the deal, then Iran will take decisions that have been provided for under the JCPOA (Joint Comprehensive Plan of Action) and outside JCPOA,” Zarif said, referring to the 2015 agreement.
The Iranian foreign minister, who is in New York to attend a meeting of the UN General Assembly on peace-building, was speaking in an interview with CBS TV in its news programme ‘Face the Nation’.
“We have put a number of options for ourselves and those options are ready, including options that would involve resuming at a much greater speed our nuclear activities,” Zarif said.
Zarif stressed, though, in separate remarks to reporters in New York on April 21 that Iran was not seeking to acquire a nuclear bomb, according to media reports.
But he said Tehran’s “probable” response should the United States quit the accord would be to restart production of enriched uranium — a key ingredient to the making of a nuclear weapon.
“America never should have feared Iran producing a nuclear bomb, but we will pursue vigorously our nuclear enrichment,” he was quoted as saying.
Iran has always insisted that its nuclear programme is for peaceful purposes.
Trump has accused Iran of violating the “spirit” of the 2015 accord by continuing to test ballistic missiles, sponsoring militant violence in the region, and by supporting the government of Syrian President Bashar al-Assad. The deal provides Tehran with sanctions relief in return for curbs on its nuclear programme.
Trump has called on European powers to “fix” what he says are the “terrible flaws” of the agreement, demanding that new restrictions to be imposed on Tehran’s nuclear and missile programs.
Trump has set a May 12 deadline to either improve or scrap the accord, which was negotiated under his predecessor, Barack Obama.
The other powers in the deal — Britain, China, France, Germany and Russia — have urged Washington to remain in the pact, saying it is the best way to prevent Iran from developing nuclear weapons.
A senior U.S. administration official has told reporters that Trump and French President Emmanuel Macron will discuss the nuclear agreement at the White House when they meet starting on April 23.
The Iranian foreign minister accused the Trump administration for having “done everything it could to prevent Iran from benefiting from this agreement,” warning that the Islamic Republic is “unlikely” to stick to the JCPOA if the US pulls out of it.
“It is important for Iran to receive the benefits of the agreement and there is no way that Iran would do a one-sided implementation of the agreement,” he added.
A possible US withdrawal from the Iran deal would send a message to all governments “that you should never come to an agreement with the United States, because at the end of the day, the operating principle for the United States is, what’s mine is mine, what’s yours is negotiable,” Zarif pointed out.
Meanwhile, Zarif also said in the CBS interview that Washington must undergo “a change in attitude” before negotiations can begin over several U.S. citizens being held prisoner in Iran.
Negotiations are a “possibility, certainly from a humanitarian perspective, but it requires a change of attitude,” Zarif said.
“It is important…for the [Trump] administration to show the ability to engage in a respectful dialogue,” Zarif said.
At least five Americans are being held in Tehran and have been sentenced to prison in Iran on espionage-related charges, according to press reports.