Iranian President Hassan Rouhani said Tuesday that if European nation signatories to an Obama-era multinational nuclear deal don’t agree by Thursday to buy Persian oil, Iran would further separate itself from commitments aimed at preventing it from acquiring a nuclear weapon.

In comments to the Iranian Parliament Tuesday, Rouhani said Tehran would announce its third step to withdraw from the landmark 2015 Joint Comprehensive Plan of Action on Thursday unless France, Britain and Germany honor their commitments under the deal to buy Iranian oil, Iran’s semi-official Tasnim News Agency reported.

“If they fail to take any significant measure, we will definitely take the third step in the coming days,” he said.

The comments come amid negations in Paris over a bailout package to compensate Iran for lost earnings in the wake of the United States sanctions for its agreement to comply with the accord.

If Iran carries through with the threat, it would be the third time reneging on commitments it made with the European Union, China, France, Russia, Britain, Germany and the United States since it announced its first move to separate itself from the agreement in May.

Iran announced it would stop compiling with the deal a year to the day since U.S. President Trump slapped sanctions against the country while wholly pulling out of JCPOA, stating that it was deficient.

Tensions between Tehran and Washington and Iran and the West have been ratcheting up ever since, resulting in several maritime incidents, including tankers having been sabotaged near the Persian Gulf, drones having shot down and an Iranian tanker having been seized by British forces at the behest of the Trump administration only to be later released.

Rouhani said if the negotiations don’t produce results by Thursday, Iran would be further scaling back its commitments in a deal intended to prevent the Middle Eastern country for acquiring a nuclear weapon.

However, if the European countries commit to buy Persian oil it would create the conditions “for us to take steps in [honoring JCPOA] commitments.”

Rouhani’s comments came a day after Iran’s Foreign Ministry said its “third step will be heavier than the first and second ones so it can strike a balance between the Islamic Republic’s rights and obligations in the JCPOA.”

Source » upi