An Iranian lawmaker said on Saturday that Iran will expel inspectors from the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) unless sanctions are lifted by February 21, a deadline set by the conservative-controlled parliament.
Iranian Parliament passed a law last November obliging the government to stop inspections carries out by the United Nations agency at Iranian nuclear sites and raise the level of uranium enrichment above the percentage specified in the nuclear agreement concluded by Tehran in 2015, if sanctions are not eased.
On December 2, the Guardian Council in Iran passed a law requiring the government to halt UN activities to inspect its nuclear sites and raise the level of uranium enrichment beyond the limit stipulated in the 2015 nuclear agreement if sanctions against the Islamic Republic are not eased within two months.
Parliamentarian Ahmed Amir Abadi Farhani said, "If the Americans do not lift the financial, banking and oil sanctions by February 21, we will definitely expel IAEA inspectors from the country and end the voluntary implementation of the additional protocol, according to the law."
On the other hand, Iran's Supreme Leader, Ayatollah Ali Khamenei, said earlier this month that his country was not in a hurry to return the United States to the 2015 nuclear deal, but he stressed the need to lift sanctions immediately.
Khamenei said in televised remarks on January 2, "We do not insist on the return of the United States to the agreement, nor do we rush for it. "But the logical one is our demand for the lifting of sanctions," he said.
However, Iranian Foreign Minister Mohammad Javad Zarif said that Iran will fully comply with the 2015 nuclear agreement aimed at preventing it from developing nuclear weapons if the United States and Europe respect their original commitments.
Zarif said in a speech to a conference held in Rome via video technology, that the so-called Joint Comprehensive Plan of Action (JCPOA) cannot be renegotiated, but it can be revived.
Follow the latest news on Google News
