ERBIL, Kurdistan Region – Iran’s government on Sunday announced that it will no longer comply with restrictions on nuclear enrichment as stipulated by the 2015 nuclear accords signed by the world’s major powers.
In a statement on Sunday following a cabinet meeting, Iran’s government said that it is no longer committed to restrictions on enrichment capacities, enrichment percentage, the volume of enriched material and nuclear research.
However, the government in Tehran added that it would continue cooperating with the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA), and is ready to go back to its nuclear deal commitments if the sanctions imposed by the US are removed.
This was the fifth decrease in Iranian commitment to the 2015 landmark nuclear deal, named the JCPOA (Joint Comprehensive Plan of Action). In the original deal, Iran agreed to restrictions preventing the attainment of nuclear weapons acquiring nuclear weapons in exchange for the end of crippling economic sanctions.
In May 2018, citing Iran’s ballistic missiles program and interventionist military policies, the US President Donald Trump pulled out of the nuclear deal, starting a chain reaction of increased hostility between the two sides.
The US President also re-imposed crippling sanctions against Iran, targeting its oil exports in particular.
Iran, as retaliation, has scaled back on its commitments four times. In May, Iran decided to lift restrictions of the storage of uranium enrichment and heavy water.
This was followed by an announcement that it would quadruple its production of enriched uranium, to 3.67%.
In September, in the third phase, Iran lifted restrictions on the research and development component of its enrichment program.
The fourth step was that of starting to feed gas to the 100 centrifuges in Fordow, an underground nuclear facility close to the central Iranian city of Qom.
“As 5th & final REMEDIAL step under paragraph 36 of JCPOA, there will no longer be any restriction on number of centrifuges. This step is within JCPOA & all 5 steps are reversible upon EFFECTIVE implementation of reciprocal obligations,” Iranian foreign minister Javad Zarif said in a tweet following Sunday’s announcement of non-compliance with all JCPOA restrictions. https://twitter.com/JZarif/status/1213900666164432900
Iranian and US relations are at a breaking point following the US drone strike assassination on Friday of top Iranian general Qassem Soleimani. The prominent military commander was widely considered to be the second most powerful man in Iran after Supreme Leader Ayatollah Khamanei.
However, some experts who closely follow the JCPOA see Iran’s fifth reversible rollback as a signal to signatories other than the United States that Tehran is still open to diplomatic engagement:
Iran’s decision to put aside the cap on the # of centrifuges as its 5th step away from its JCPOA commitments is less harsh than the initially feared resumption of 20% enrichment. This shows Iran still wants the Europeans on its side and doesn’t want to break the deal yet.
— Ali Vaez (@AliVaez) January 5, 2020
#Iran’s 5th announcement re #JCPOA could have been far worse given circumstances. Crucially, IAEA acces intact to oversee nuclear program & enrichment levels not shot up to 20% as feared.E3/EU should take- & seize- this as signal that Tehran allowing narrow window for diplomacy.
— Ellie Geranmayeh (@EllieGeranmayeh) January 5, 2020
Germany, France, the UK, China and Russia are the remaining signatories of the deal, and they have previously urged Iran to remain committed called on the US to honor the obligations of the multilateral treaty.
It is possible that countries such as the UK, France and Germany will join the United States in re-imposing sanctions in the wake of Iran’s decision to stop abiding by enrichment restrictions.
