European Union announced sanctions on 8 officials and 3 state entities in Iran on the pretext of Human Rights violations allegedly happened during November 2019 unrest in Iran.
Iran’s Foreign Ministry said that such measure could suspend comprehensive talks with Europe, including on Human Rights and other issues like terrorism, drug trafficking and migrants.
These sanctions violate the Charter of the United Nations, prohibiting interference in internal affairs of other countries.
They could also indicate an attempt by Europeans to change the balance in ongoing nuclear deal talks in Vienna in the interest of the West.
The United States ceased its participation to the JCPOA, informally known as the Iran nuclear deal, in 2018 and resumed all sanctions against Iran in total disregard of the UNSC Resolution 2231.
US President Joe Bide, however, acknowledged that his predecessor’s so-called ‘maximum pressure’ policy against Iran failed and promised to rejoin the nuclear deal.
But Iran made it clear that all sanctions resumed and newly-imposed were in violation of the deal and the UN Security Council Resolution 2231; therefore, Iran said, the US must verifiably lift all sanctions before Iran, in return, reverses its compliance reduction measure that were taken to reciprocate US sanctions.
Now, there seems that there is an agreement between Europe and the US to increase leverage on Iran by new Human Rights related sanction to increase pressure on Iran to temper its rightful stance.
European sanctions are in any aspect destroying any bases for Iran’s cooperation with the international community, and international cooperation in general.
Iran has always chosen the path to interaction and cooperation whether in the framework of the JCPOA or any other international issue.
Europeans must shoulder the responsibility of its destroying international cooperation and must be held accountable for its consequences.
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