MNA Iranian Deputy Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi says that Iran has held the door open for diplomacy despite its decision to press ahead with previously announced diminishing JCPOA commitments.
Deputy Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchimade the remarks in a meeting with State Secretary of the Ministry of Foreign and European Affairs of the Slovak Republic Luk Parzek and his accompanying delegation in Tehran on Tuesday.
Araghchi said that unfortunately there is not any balance between Irans obligations and its rights in the JCPOA anymore and given the lack of action from theEuropeans side, there is no reason for Iran to carry out its commitments unilaterally.
Elsewhere, the senior Iranian diplomat expressed his happiness with the continued consolations and contacts between Iran and Slovakia, expressing hope that the bilateral trade relations would further expand after holding joint commission meeting in future.
Luk Parzek, for his part that his country is determined to continue political consultations and strengthen the economic and trade relations with Iran, expressing the readiness of Bratislava to hold joint commission meeting in future.
The Slovak diplomat also referred to his countrys support for the JCPOA, expressing hope that with the implementation of the EU trade mechanism INSTEX, Europe would maintain and solidify its economic and trade relations with Iran.
Secretary of Iran's Supreme National Security Council Ali Shamkhani said Tuesday that the second phase of diminishing JCPOA commitments will come into effect on July 7.
Running out of patience with the EU's inaction in the face of the growing US pressure, Iran announced on the anniversary of US illegal withdrawal from the JCPOA on May 8 that it would resume high-level uranium enrichment if the other parties to the deal do not fulfill their promises in relation to banking relations and oil sales by a 60-day deadline that expires on July 7.
The first phase of the diminishing JCPOA commitments has already come into force. Last week,Spokesman for the Atomic Energy Organization of Iran (AEOI) Behrouz Kamalvandi announcedthat Iran would increase low-enriched uranium stockpile by fourfold in 10 days, which surpasses the 300km limit set by the JCPOA.
Tehran has announced that it does not plan to withdraw from JCPOA and will halt its decision to diminish JCPOA commitments as soon as the other parties take steps to fulfill their obligations under the deal.