Tasnim – Iranian Foreign Minister Mohammad Javad Zarif blasted the US Department of State’s threat to use the 2015 nuclear deal’s snapback mechanism.

The Iranian official lashed out at the US “shameless” threat of using the snapback mechanism despite Washington's unilateral withdrawal from the nuclear deal, known as the Joint Comprehensive Plan of Action (JCPOA).

“Taking unprecedented step of punishing those who seek to COMPLY with UN Security Council isn't enough for this @statedept,” Zarif posted on Twitter, adding, “Now it claims that US can use snapback bec it's a JCPOA participant.”

The Iranian foreign minister then reminded Washington that it had unilaterally withdrawn from the nuclear deal more than a year ago, and wrote, “NEWS FLASH: @realdonaldtrump explicitly long ago “ceased US participation.” Shameless."

In May 2018, the US president pulled his country out of the JCPOA.

Iran and the remaining parties launched talks to save the JCPOA after the US withdrawal, but the three EU parties to the deal (France, Britain, and Germany) have failed to ensure Iran’s economic interests.

The EU’s inaction forced Tehran to stop honoring certain commitments to the nuclear deal, including a rise in the stockpile of enriched uranium.

Iran maintains that the new measures are not designed to harm the JCPOA but to save the accord by creating a balance in the commitments.