UK foreign secretary regrets Trump’s decision on Iran ⁰

British Foreign Secretary Boris Johnson voices regret for US President Donald Trump’s decision to withdraw from the Iran nuclear deal.

Johnson made the comment in a tweet on Tuesday, also expressing London’s firm commitment to the landmark agreement, officially known as the Joint Comprehensive Plan of Action (JCPOA).

“Deeply regret US decision to withdraw from the Iran nuclear deal. UK remains strongly committed to the JCPOA, and will work with E3 partners and the other parties to the deal to maintain it. Await more detail on US plan,” he tweeted.

The British foreign secretary, who has just returned from a trip to Washington, had earlier called on US President Donald not to scuttle the Iran nuclear deal and that “it would be a mistake to walk away” from the international accord.

He argued that “only Iran would gain” if the United States withdraws from the international nuclear agreement between Iran and six world powers in 2015, which lifted nuclear-related sanctions on Tehran in exchange for curbs on its nuclear program.

Jonson’s tweet on Tuesday came shortly after Trump announced his decision to withdraw the United States from Iran’s nuclear deal with the world powers and re-impose sanctions against the Islamic Republic.

The announcement came despite massive efforts by the European allies of the US to convince Trump to stay in the 2015 deal, reached between Iran and the P5+1, five permanent members of the UN Security Council – the US, France, Britain, Russia and China – plus Germany.

France, Germany and Britain also released a joint statement in which they announced their commitment to the deal despite Trump’s decision to pull out and his threat of sanctions.

French President Emmanuel Macron, German Chancellor Angela Merkel and British Prime Minister Theresa May expressed “regret and concern” over the decision and called on Iran to “show restraint” in response to Trump’s announcement.

Russia and China, as the other signatories to the JCPOA, have warned against efforts to scrap the landmark accord and pledged to continue to honor their commitments under the deal.

The International Atomic Energy Agency has been monitoring Iran’s compliance with its commitments under the JCPOA and has consistently verified the Islamic Republic’s compliance.

The Islamic Republic has always insisted that its atomic program is merely for peaceful purposes and that the West is using the nuclear case as a pretext to put pressure on Tehran.

Source: Presstv