Iran calls on US to return to nuclear deal
On September 27, Iranian President Hassan Rouhani declared that he did not want war with the United States and called on Washington to return to the 2015 Iran Nuclear Agreement.
President Hassan Rouhani said on September 27 that Iran does not want war with the United States and believes the United States will "sooner or later" return to support the Iran nuclear deal after the Trump administration withdrew from the agreement in May 2018.
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| Iranian President Hassan Rouhani meets with United Nations Secretary-General Antonio Guterres on the sidelines of the 73rd session of the United Nations General Assembly in New York on September 26, 2018. Photo: AP |
Mr. Rouhani said in a press conference that the US decision to withdraw from the 2015 Iran Nuclear Deal was a "mistake" because this would not benefit the US, Iran, Europe or any other country.
"One day America will return, sooner or later," the Iranian president affirmed.
He also said that the Trump administration made a "second mistake" at the United Nations Security Council on September 26 because while 14 other countries directly or indirectly supported the P5+1 nuclear deal, only Mr. Trump - the chair of the meeting - spoke out against the deal and it seemed that the US President was isolated.
Speaking at the Security Council, Mr. Trump called the Iran nuclear deal, also known as the Joint Comprehensive Plan of Action (JCPOA), a "terrible one-sided deal," declaring that Iran "should never be allowed to have a nuclear weapon" and accusing the country's government of contributing to "violence, terrorism and chaos" in the region.
Mr Rouhani said it was "quite strange, unprecedented and surprising" that President Trump, who chairs the Security Council, called the other 14 member states in violation of the resolution when they endorsed the JCPOA - an agreement that was unanimously agreed by the entire Security Council in 2015, including a vote of approval from the US.
The Iranian president also added that Mr Trump not only disagreed with the resolution but also declared that anyone who implemented it "will be punished".
Responding to a question about whether the harsh words of Mr. Trump and other top officials of the US administration about Iran would lead to a war, Mr. Rouhani said that since the 1979 revolution, Iran "has been the target of such words many times."
The Iranian president also commented: "We do not want a war with the United States anywhere in the region. We do not want to attack them. We do not want to escalate tensions - none of the above."
"But we ask the US to comply with the law and respect the sovereignty of nations," he added.
Mr. Rouhani also said: "America must rethink its presence in the region, in the Persian Gulf, the Sea of Oman, in Afghanistan, Iraq and other places."
Mr Trump has vowed to continue isolating Iran through the sanctions Washington reimposed on Tehran after withdrawing from the Iran nuclear deal in May 2018. The next round of sanctions will take effect in early November 2018.
The Iranian president also informed the press that the sanctions "that were supposed to come into effect in November 2018 have been implemented since September 2018, so there will be no more sanctions starting from November."
Mr. Rouhani said Iran will continue to cooperate with countries that support the nuclear deal.
He also called the decision by the five countries that signed the nuclear deal on September 24 "a very good step" as the countries set up a financial system in Europe to facilitate payments for Iranian imports and exports.
"We have reached the JCPOA agreement. Even up to this point, we have achieved the benefits that were promised in the agreement for our country and our people. We will maintain this agreement,"
However, he added: "If the situation changes, we will have other paths and solutions"./.
