Iran says the U.S. needs to show it wants nuclear deal revived

Iran said Wednesday the United States needs to show "in practice" that it wants a revival of the 2015 nuclear agreement, after an EU coordinator urged parties to accept a draft text of the deal.

"America always maintains that it wants an agreement, so this approach should be seen in the text of the agreement and in practice," Iranian Foreign Minister Hossein Amir-Abdollahian told European Union (EU) foreign policy chief Josep Borrell in a phone conversation, according to Iran's Foreign Ministry.

"If America takes a realistic step toward finding a solution and reaching an agreement, a good agreement will be available to all parties," Amir-Abdollahian added.

He reiterated that Iran is "determined to reach a good, robust and lasting deal."

The phone call between Amir-Abdollahian and Borrell came after the EU's top diplomat proposed a new draft text to restore the nuclear deal, formally known as the Joint Comprehensive Plan of Action (JCPOA).

Borrell noted in an opinion piece published by the Financial Times on Tuesday that he has put a text on the table as he has "concluded that the space for additional significant compromises has been exhausted."

"This text represents the best possible deal that I, as facilitator of the negotiations, see as feasible," he wrote, adding that "I see no other comprehensive or effective alternative within reach."

"It is now time for swift political decisions to conclude the Vienna negotiations on the basis of my proposed text and to immediately return to a fully implemented JCPOA," Borrell wrote.

"If the deal is rejected, we risk a dangerous nuclear crisis, set against the prospect of increased isolation for Iran and its people," he said.

Iran signed the JCPOA with the world powers in July 2015, agreeing to curb its nuclear program in return for the removal of sanctions on the country. However, former U.S. President Donald Trump pulled Washington out of the agreement in May 2018 and reimposed unilateral sanctions on Iran, prompting the latter to drop some of its commitments under the pact.

Talks to revive the deal began in April 2021 in Vienna but were suspended in March this year because of political differences between Tehran and Washington. Both sides held indirect talks in Doha of Qatar late in June but failed to settle their differences.

(CGTN)