Iran says will not extend 60-day deadline to scale back nuclear deal commitments

Iran will not extend a 60-day deadline for it to start pulling out of more commitments agreed under its nuclear deal, the spokesman for Iran’s Atomic Energy Organization, Behrouz Kamalvandi, said on Wednesday.

Iran stopped complying in May with some commitments in the 2015 nuclear deal that was agreed with global powers, after the United States unilaterally withdrew from the accord in 2018 and re-introduced sanctions on Tehran.

Iran said in May it would start enriching uranium at a higher level, unless world powers protected its economy from US sanctions within 60 days.

“Iran’s two-month deadline to remaining signatories of the JCPOA (nuclear deal) cannot be extended, and the second phase will be implemented exactly as planned,” Kamalvandi was quoted as saying by Tasnim news agency.

“The countdown to pass the 300 kilogrammes reserve of enriched uranium has started and in 10 days time we will pass this limit,” Iran’s atomic energy organisation spokesman Behrouz Kamalvandi had said on Monday at a press conference broadcast live.

Iran will continue scaling back its compliance with its nuclear deal commitments in the absence of “positive signals” from other signatories to the pact, Iranian President Hassan Rouhani had told a meeting of Russia, China and other Asia leaders in Tajikistan.