Tag Archives: nuclear deal

Germany sees a chance to return to a joint transatlantic approach in tackling Iran’s nuclear programme once the new U.S. administration under President-elect Joe Biden takes office, a German official said on Monday. In May 2018, U.S. President Donald Trump quit a deal with Tehran that sought to limit Iran’s …

Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, in an apparent message to U.S. President-elect Joe Biden, said on Sunday there should be no return to the 2015 Iran nuclear deal abandoned by President Donald Trump. Biden, who takes office on Jan. 20, has said he would rejoin the accord if Tehran first …

Saudi Arabia’s foreign minister said on Saturday he was confident that Democrat Joe Biden’s incoming U.S. administration would pursue policies that help regional stability and that any discussions with it would lead to strong cooperation. Riyadh is bracing itself for a new U.S. president who pledged on the election campaign …

U.S. Senator Chris Coons, a possible secretary of state in a Biden administration, said on Friday he would only support returning to the 2015 Iran nuclear deal if there were a path to limit Tehran’s missile program and support for regional proxies. The agreement, which U.S. President Donald Trump abandoned …

Saudi Arabia called on the UN atomic watchdog agency to continue exposing Iran’s nuclear activities on Wednesday. The International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) should also intensify searches within the Islamic Republic to uncover sites that it may use to conduct undisclosed nuclear activities, the Kingdom’s governor to the agency, Prince …

The United States on Wednesday imposed broad sanctions targeting Iran, blacklisting a foundation controlled by Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei and taking aim at what Washington called Iran’s human rights abuses a year after a deadly crackdown on anti-government demonstrators. The sanctions announced by the U.S. Treasury Department, which also …

Iranian Foreign Minister Mohammad Javad Zarif said Iran would fully implement its 2015 nuclear deal if U.S. President-elect Joe Biden lifts sanctions on Tehran, which Zarif said could be done swiftly through “three executive orders”. “If Mr. Biden is willing to fulfill U.S. commitments, we too can immediately return to …

President Donald Trump, with two months left in office, last week asked for options on attacking Iran’s main nuclear site, but ultimately decided against taking the dramatic step, a U.S. official said on Monday. Trump made the request during an Oval Office meeting on Thursday with his top national security …

Bolivia’s new president, Luis Arce, has moved swiftly to restore ties with Iran and Venezuela, receiving the credentials of ambassadors from the two countries on Wednesday, just three days after his socialist party retook the reins of power. Bolivia’s government said in a statement it wanted to “reestablish diplomatic relations …

Iran’s president said on Sunday the next U.S. administration should use the opportunity to compensate for President Donald Trump’s mistakes, Iranian state TV reported after Joe Biden captured the U.S. presidency. Tensions have spiked between the United States and Iran since 2018, when Trump exited a nuclear deal between Tehran …

When reality TV star Donald Trump took office he quickly cast Iran as a main villain of his presidency – ultimately abandoning a landmark deal aimed at stopping Tehran from developing nuclear weapons and putting an economic squeeze on the Islamic Republic. Joe Biden has pledged to rejoin the 2015 …

Joe Biden plans to scrap what he calls the “dangerous failure” of President Donald Trump’s maximum pressure policy on Iran should he win the U.S. election, but after years of confrontation his diplomacy-first approach to a historic Middle East foe could prove an unforgiving challenge. Vice president under President Barack …

The United States on Monday imposed fresh Iran-related sanctions targeting the Islamic Republic’s oil sector, including the Iranian Ministry of Petroleum, in Washington’s latest move to increase pressure on Tehran. The U.S. Treasury Department in a statement said it was slapping sanctions on key actors in Iran’s oil sector for …

The United States on Monday said it blacklisted two Chinese men and six Chinese entities for having dealt with Iranian shipping company Islamic Republic of Iran Shipping Lines (IRISL) and, in some cases, helping it to evade U.S. sanctions. The U.S. State Department named the entities as Reach Holding Group …

Venezuelan President Nicolas Maduro on Wednesday pledged to improve gasoline output and distribution in the fuel-starved nation, as the second of three Iranian tankers carrying fuel entered the South American country’s waters. The once-prosperous OPEC nation is struggling under a collapsing oil industry and U.S. sanctions that have crippled imports …

The United States on Thursday blacklisted several Iranian officials and entities over alleged gross violations of human rights, including slapping sanctions on a judge it said was involved in the case of an Iranian wrestler sentenced to death. Secretary of State Mike Pompeo in a statement said the United States …

The United States said on Thursday it had renewed a waiver for Iraq to import Iranian electricity, this time for 60 days to enable Baghdad to take “meaningful actions” to reduce its energy dependence on neighbouring Tehran. The waiver will continue to exempt Iraq from U.S. sanctions reimposed on Iran, …

Iran is ready for a full prisoner exchange with the United States, Foreign Minister Mohammad Javad Zarif said in a virtual address to the Council on Foreign Relations in New York on Monday, amid heightened tension between the longtime foes. Washington has long demanded that Iran release U.S. citizens including …

The United States on Monday will sanction more than two dozen people and entities involved in Iran’s nuclear, missile and conventional arms programs, a senior U.S. official said, putting teeth behind U.N. sanctions on Tehran that Washington argues have resumed despite the opposition of allies and adversaries. Speaking on condition …

Britain, France and Germany told the U.N. Security Council on Friday that U.N. sanctions relief for Iran – agreed under a 2015 nuclear deal – would continue beyond Sept. 20, when the United States asserts that all the measures should be reimposed. In a letter to the 15-member body, seen …

A U.S. judge on Wednesday forcefully rebuked federal prosecutors for a series of failures, including withholding exculpatory evidence, that led to the dismissal of an indictment against a banker who had been convicted of Iran sanctions violations. U.S. District Judge Alison Nathan in Manhattan said prosecutors in the U.S. Attorney’s …

The United States said on Wednesday it plans to impose sanctions on those who violate a U.N. arms embargo on Iran, which Washington says will now stay in place instead of expiring in October as agreed under a 2015 nuclear deal. U.S. Special Representative for Venezuela and Iran Elliott Abrams …

Iran’s central bank said on Saturday it was taking legal steps to counter a lawsuit filed in a U.S. court by creditors seeking to seize $1.7 billion of its assets held by Deutsche Boerse’s (DB1Gn.DE) Clearstream unit. The German stock exchange operator said earlier the creditors had filed the suit …

The president of the U.N. Security Council, Indonesia, said on Tuesday it was “not in the position to take further action” on a U.S. bid to trigger a return of all U.N. sanctions on Iran because there is no consensus in the 15-member body. Thirteen council members expressed their opposition …

The U.N. nuclear watchdog’s chief Rafael Grossi arrived in Iran on Monday, Iranian state TV reported, as he seeks access for inspectors to two suspected former atomic sites after a months-long standoff between Tehran and the body. Tehran said Grossi’s visit would “strengthen ties and build trust” between Tehran and …

Venezuelan President Nicolas Maduro on Saturday said it would be a “good idea” to look into buying missiles from Iran, a day after Colombia said Venezuela was considering such a plan amid growing ties between Caracas and Tehran. Iran in May supplied gasoline to Venezuela to ease chronic shortages, triggering …

U.S. Secretary of State Mike Pompeo will visit Israel on Monday and the United Arab Emirates a day later to discuss the countries’ normalisation deal, two sources briefed on his itinerary said. Also on Pompeo’s agenda will be the security challenges posed by Iran and China in the region, said …

The United Kingdom, France and Germany on Thursday said they cannot support the U.S. move to restore United Nations sanctions on Iran, saying the action is incompatible with efforts to support the Iran nuclear deal. “In order to preserve the agreement, we urge Iran to reverse all measures inconsistent with …

Iran inaugurated a surface-to-surface ballistic missile with a range of 1,400 km and a new cruise missile, Iranian Defence Minister Amir Hatami said in a televised speech on Thursday, ignoring U.S. demands that Tehran halt its missile program. “The surface-to-surface missile, called martyr Qassem Soleimani, has a range of 1,400 …

U.S. Secretary of State Mike Pompeo will likely travel to New York on Thursday to seek a return of all U.N. sanctions on Iran and meet with U.N. Secretary-General Antonio Guterres, diplomats and a U.N. official said. To trigger a return of the sanctions, the United States will submit a …

The United States lost a bid on Friday to extend a U.N. arms embargo on Iran as Russian President Vladimir Putin proposed a summit of world leaders to avoid “confrontation” over a U.S. threat to trigger a return of all U.N. sanctions on Tehran. In a U.N. Security Council vote, …

The six-member Gulf Cooperation Council (GCC) has asked the United Nations to extend an international arms embargo on Iran, a move pushed strongly by the United States. The secretariat of the GCC, made up of Bahrain, Kuwait, Oman, Qatar, the United Arab Emirates and Saudi Arabia, said in a statement …

The United Nations Security Council will vote next week on a U.S. bid to extend an international arms embargo on Iran, Secretary of State Mike Pompeo said on Wednesday, despite the warnings of some diplomats that the measure lacks support. The arms embargo on Iran is currently set to end …

U.S. Secretary of State Mike Pompeo on Thursday said he was expanding the scope of Iran metals sanctions, targeting 22 specific materials that he said were used in connection with Iran’s nuclear, military or ballistic missile programs. Pompeo in a statement called it a “major expansion” of the Iran metals-related …

A Swiss pharmaceutical company has completed the first transaction under a new humanitarian trade channel with Iran, the government in Bern said on Monday. The Swiss Humanitarian Trade Arrangement (SHTA) channel to bring food and medicine to Iran started trial operations in January, helping supply Swiss goods to the struggling …

Iran will retaliate against any country that carries out cyber attacks on its nuclear sites, the head of civilian defence said, after a fire at its Natanz plant which some Iranian officials said may have been caused by cyber sabotage. The underground Natanz Fuel Enrichment Plant (FEP) is one of …

An “incident” has occurred at Iran’s Natanz nuclear facility but no damage was caused and the site is operating as usual, the national Atomic Energy Organisation said on Thursday. The Natanz Fuel Enrichment Plant (FEP), covering 100,000 square meters and built eight meters underground, is one of several Iranian facilities …

Iran plans to export oil from a port on its Gulf of Oman coast by March, the president said on Thursday, a shift that would avoid using the Strait of Hormuz shipping route that has been a focus of regional tension for decades. Tensions have spiked between Tehran and Washington …

Iranian Foreign Minister Mohammad Javad Zarif on Friday accused France, Germany and Britain of serving Iran’s arch-foes the United States and Israel by drafting a nuclear resolution against Tehran. “Behind (the) facade, E3 are accessories to (U.S. President Donald) Trump & (Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin) Netanyahu—& in no position to …

Britain, France and Germany said on Friday they would not back U.S. efforts to unilaterally trigger the reimposition of United Nations sanctions on Iran, but said they wanted talks with Tehran over its ongoing violations of a 2015 nuclear accord. Under Iran’s 2015 deal with world powers to accept limits …

Iranian Foreign Minister Mohammad Javad Zarif tweeted on Thursday that “an agreeable solution is possible” for the U.N. nuclear watchdog’s request for access to two nuclear sites in the country. France, Britain and Germany, all parties to Iran’s nuclear deal with major powers, have submitted a draft resolution to the …

Russia and China have started making the case at the United Nations against Washington’s claim that it can trigger a return of all sanctions on Iran at the Security Council, with Moscow invoking a 50-year-old international legal opinion to argue against the move. Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov and the …

Seeking to deter further shipments of Iranian fuel to Venezuela, the Trump administration has quietly warned foreign governments, seaports, shipping companies and insurers that they could face stiff U.S. sanctions if they aid the tanker flotilla, the U.S. envoy on Venezuela told Reuters on Friday. Elliott Abrams, Washington’s special representative …

France, Germany and Britain on Saturday criticised a U.S. decision to end sanctions waivers allowing work on Iranian nuclear sites designed to prevent weapons development. “We deeply regret the U.S. decision to end the three waivers,” the three European countries said in a joint statement. “These projects, endorsed by U.N. …