Supervisor Elham AbolFateh
Editor in Chief Mohamed Wadie

Iran Welcomes US Sanctions Relief But Says It’s Too Little


Sun 06 Feb 2022 | 11:36 AM
Ahmad El-Assasy

Iran's foreign minister hailed US sanctions relief aimed at luring Iran back to the 2015 nuclear deal on Saturday, but said it was insufficient.

The Biden administration lifted certain restrictions on Iran's nuclear programme on Friday, as foreign powers and the Islamic Republic resume discussions to save the stalled agreement.

“Lifting some sanctions in a real and objective manner could be interpreted as the good will that Americans talk about,” Foreign Minister Hossein Amirabdollahian told reporters. However, he said the move “is not sufficient.”

Secretary of State Antony Blinken signed a number of sanctions waivers relating to Iran's civilian nuclear programme. The decision overturns the Trump administration's decision to revoke them. It comes as US negotiators return to Vienna for a potentially pivotal meeting.

The waivers are aimed at luring Iran back to the 2015 nuclear deal, which it has been breaking since former President Donald Trump withdrew from it in 2018 and re-imposed US sanctions.

For the time being, the waivers will protect foreign governments and enterprises working in Iran's civilian nuclear industry from US sanctions. In May 2020, the Trump administration revoked them.

After the United States pulled out of the nuclear deal, Iran has gradually distanced itself from its conditions. Before returning to compliance, Iran has requested the restoration of all sanctions relief it was given as part of the deal.

“Good will, in our viewpoint, means that something tangible happens on the ground,” Amirabdollahian said.

Foreign Ministry spokesman Saeed Khatibzadeh on Saturday also called the U.S. sanctions relief insufficient, saying Tehran expects the lifting of sanctions outlined under nuclear deal.

“Everyone knows that is not sufficient,” Khatibzadeh was quoted as saying by the Iranian Jamaran news website. “Indeed, the Islamic Republic of Iran is waiting for the U.S. to implement its duties and commitments according to the nuclear deal dimensions.”