TEHRAN, November 5. /TASS/. Tehran is set take a new step in scaling back on its commitment to the Joint Comprehensive Plan of Action (JCPOA) on the Iranian nuclear program on November 6 by launching centrifuges at the Fordow enrichment facility, Iranian President Hassan Rouhani said on Tuesday.
"Tomorrow, Iran will begin the fourth step of scaling back on the nuclear deal obligations," the Press TV channel quoted him as saying. Rouhani added that "the new step will begin with injection of gas into centrifuges of Fordow."
At the same time, the Iranian president announced that "two months are given to the parties to the agreement [on the Iranian nuclear deal] to start implementing it again." "All actions taken by Iran away from the deal are reversible," he stressed.
In accordance with the JCPOA signed in 2015, Iran was supposed to modernize the Fordow Fuel Enrichment Plant under international observers’ supervision. The envisioned modernization was supposed to make this facility impossible to be used for military purposes.
In 2015, Iran and six major powers (five member states of the United Nations Security Council - Russia, the United States, France, the United Kingdom and China - and Germany) agreed on the final Joint Comprehensive Plan of Action, which particularly stipulated the removal of sanctions imposed on Tehran over its nuclear program.
The deal limited Tehran’s nuclear development work in exchange for lifting the UN sanctions and unilateral US and EU restrictions. Iran undertook not to enrich uranium above 3.67% within 15 years and keep the stocks of enriched uranium at the level of no more 300 kg. Iran also assumed commitments not to build additional heavy water reactors, not to accumulate heavy water and not to engage in developing nuclear charges.
On May 8, 2018 US President Donald Trump declared Washington’s pullout from the Iranian nuclear program - an arrangement achieved in 2015 to limit Tehran’s nuclear research in exchange for the lifting of UN Security Council sanctions and unilateral restrictions imposed by the United States and the European Union.
On May 8, 2019 Iran’s President Hassan Rouhani declared that Tehran was suspending some of its obligations under the nuclear deal and gave the other participants two months to resume compliance. Iran argues that its counterparts, European in the first place, have default on some of their obligations contained in the economic part of the agreement, so in its current shape the deal makes no sense.
On July 7, Iranian Deputy Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi announced that Tehran sought to preserve the nuclear deal and its latest steps were aimed at encouraging European partners to meet their commitments. The senior diplomat voiced hope that in the coming 60 days Iran would manage to achieve agreements with the Europeans on preserving the JCPOA. Otherwise, Iran would keep scaling down its commitments under the deal.