French President Emmanuel Macron urged Iran to respect its nuclear obligations, adding that this was the moment when the international community must come together to fight the coronavirus.
He made his remarks during a telephone call with his Iranian counterpart Hassan Rouhani.
“He (Macron) hoped that Iran would turn to the respect of its nuclear obligations, refrain from taking new measures contrary to the Joint Comprehensive Plan of Action (JCPOA) and contribute to the easing of regional tensions,” Elysee said in a statement.
Tehran in July began stockpiling more low-enriched uranium than allowed by the nuclear deal in the first of five breaches that it has declared in response to US President Donald Trump’s 2018 decision to pull the United States out of the accord and re-impose harsh sanctions that have strangled Iran’s petroleum exports, battering its economy.
Iran says it would reverse the violations, which have included enriching uranium to a higher level than set in the agreement and operating prohibited advanced centrifuges, the machines that purify uranium, if the sanctions were removed.
The breaches were aimed at pressuring European powers to help Iran weather the impact of the US sanctions and perhaps also at pressuring the United States to ease sanctions and open talks with Iran.
After Iran in January announced it no longer would observe any of the deal’s restraints, Britain, France and Germany triggered the deal’s dispute mechanism, opening the door to a possible re-imposition of international sanctions. Russia and China also are parties to the deal.
