Russia sees 'encouraging signs' from US on returning to Iran nuclear deal

Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov said that the US has shown "encouraging signs" with regards to finding a compromise and returning to the Iran nuclear deal.

Russia supports dialogue where all claims would be addressed and discussed in an "inclusive process," Lavrov said while addressing the Middle East Conference of Valdai Discussion Club, a Russian think tank, on Wednesday.

However, the US still tends to view the region's problems through an "anti-Iranian prism", Xinhua news agency quoted the Foreign Minister as further saying.

The top diplomat of Russia said that Moscow does not support any modifications to the Iran nuclear deal and hopes to adhere to the original version.

"We have proposed an informal roadmap where both the US and Iran would simultaneously and consistently return to fulfilling their obligations," Lavrov said.

The Iran nuclear deal, formally named the Joint Comprehensive Plan of Action (JCPOA), was reached in 2015 by China, France, Germany, Russia, the US, and the US, the European Union and Iran.

The US withdrew from the JCPOA on May 8, 2018 and later unilaterally reimposed sanctions on Tehran, despite objections from the international community.

As a result of the US' unilateral exit, Iran has surpassed JCPOA-stipulated limits on its uranium enrichment level and on its stockpiles of heavy water and low-enriched uranium.

The Islamic Republic has also lifted JCPOA limitations on its nuclear research and development activities.

In December 2020, the country's Parliament passed the law of "Iran's Strategic Action Plan to Counter Sanctions" which obliges the government to further reduce the obligations under the nuclear deal unless the US lifts sanctions against the Islamic Republic.

--IANS

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