Rubio announced that in the coming weeks the US will work with E3, as well as with other members of the UN Security Council on the implementation of the sanction mechanism. He also assured that Washington remains open to direct contact with Tehran for a peaceful and lasting solution of the Iranian nuclear issue.
The secretary of state also called Iranian leaders to immediately take steps to guarantee that their country would never obtain nuclear weapons.
On Thursday, the E3 countries launched a special sanction mechanism “Snapback”. It provides, among others embargo for weapons supplies, restrictions on the development of ballistic missiles and freezing of assets. These sanctions were abolished under the International Nuclear Agreement of 2015. Its signatories, apart from Iran, are Great Britain, Germany, France, Russia, China and the EU. The US withdrew from the contract in 2018.
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Europeans argue that Iran has been breaking the records of this agreement for years, negotiated by the administration of US President Barack Obama, and want the authorities in Tehran to provide UN inspectors with full access to their nuclear program. Although Iran has been ensuring for years that he is only interested in the peaceful use of nuclear technologies, he enriched uranium to a level of 60 percent, i.e. higher than used for civil purposes.
In the past, Iranian officials threatened that the launch of the “Snapback” mechanism could cause them to exit the nuclear (NPT) or International Atomic Energy Agency (Maea). They consider punishing them by virtue of the provisions of the contract, from which the United States has unilaterally withdrawn.
