Director of the Department for Nonproliferation and Arms Control of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs Vladimir Yermakov. Archival photoMOSCOW, Feb. 7Moscow considers counterproductive attempts to artificially rush negotiations on the restoration of the Joint Comprehensive Plan of Action on the Iranian Nuclear Program (JCPOA) and set deadlines for their completion in advance, said in an interview with RIA Novosti the director of the department for Vladimir Yermakov, a senior State Department spokesman, said that negotiations with Iran on returning to the JCPOA are at the final stage, the parties have no more than a few weeks left to reach an agreement.
The Foreign Ministry commented on the allegations about the creation of a JCPOA + at the negotiations in Vienna «Of course, it is always more difficult to restore than to break, which should be remembered by those who today are trying to adjust the negotiation process and set deadlines for its completion in advance,» Yermakov said. He stressed that Russia is guided «not by «red dates» in other people's political calendars, but by a meaningful outcome, which, we hope, will create conditions for the sustainable implementation of the JCPOA with access to the final normalization of international cooperation with Iran.» «It seems to us that those in the United States and Europe, who thoughtfully follow the situation in the negotiations on the JCPOA and know the history of the issue, there is still an inner conviction that the final collapse of the «nuclear deal» is dangerous.It would inevitably lead to an escalation of tension in the Middle East and the Persian Gulf with unpredictable and , most likely, irreversible consequences that will be felt on a global scale,» the diplomat added. t negotiations on the renewal of the JCPOA and the lifting of sanctions by Washington. The eighth round started on December 27, and the negotiators paused on January 28 to consult with the capitals. Negotiations are expected to resume this week. Against this background, the State Department told RIA Novosti that Washington had decided to reinstate the previously canceled exemptions from the sanctions against Iran's nuclear program. At the same time, it was noted that Washington does not consider this step as a concession to Tehran. Iran's nuclear program. In May 2018, then-US President Donald Trump withdrew from the JCPOA and reinstated sanctions against Tehran. In response, Iran announced a phased reduction in its obligations under the agreement, abandoning restrictions on nuclear research, centrifuges and the level of uranium enrichment. Earlier, the Permanent Representative of the Russian Federation to international organizations in Vienna, Mikhail Ulyanov, did not rule out that if negotiations in Vienna on the restoration of the JCPOA continue at the same pace, before the end of February, the parties can reach an agreement. After that, it may take about two more months to prepare for the resumption of the nuclear deal, so it could be fully operational by April, at which time the oil embargo against Iran could already be lifted.
Iran and the United States will synchronize steps to resume the JCPOA, the Foreign Ministry said
