Iran will ‘consider’ nuclear weapons treaty withdrawal if Europe pushes UN dispute

Iran said Monday it will consider withdrawing from the Treaty on the Non-Proliferation of Nuclear Weapons if a dispute over its atomic program goes before the U.N. Security Council.

France, Germany and the United Kingdom launched a process last week charging Iran with failing to observe the terms of the 2015 nuclear deal, a move that could eventually see the Security Council reimpose international sanctions on the country.

Iran has accused the three European Union member states of inaction over sanctions the United States reimposed on it after unilaterally withdrawing from the landmark accord in 2018.

The European move “has no legal basis” and if they take further measures “Iran’s withdrawal from the NPT will be considered,” Foreign Minister Mohammad Javad Zarif was quoted as saying by the Iranian parliament’s website.

The landmark 2015 deal reached with China, France, Germany, Russia, the United Kingdom and the United States gave Iran relief from sanctions in return for curbs on its nuclear program.

Since the U.S. pullout, Iran has progressively rolled back its commitments to the accord in retaliation.

It has hit out at the three European nations that remain party to the tattered deal for failing to live up to their promises to ease the impact of U.S. sanctions on its oil-based economy.

“If the Europeans return to the commitments, Iran will also stop reducing its commitments, but if the Europeans continue as they have been … we have different options,” said Zarif.

The foreign minister said Iran’s President Hassan Rouhani had warned former E.U. foreign affairs chief Federica Mogherini about such consequences in three letters sent in 2018.

“It was stated in the president’s letter that if this issue is referred to the Security Council, Iran’s withdrawal from the NPT will be discussed but before that we can consider other [options],” he said.

With reporting from AFP