New York [US], August 29: Iran has sharply criticised Germany, France and the United Kingdom over the move to reintroduce UN sanctions on Tehran.
The decision, initiated by the European states on Thursday in a letter to the UN Security Council, is "baseless and unlawful," Iranian Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi said.
The trio, collectively known as the E3, should immediately reverse the step and adopt a responsible and realistic approach in the coming days, Tehran's chief diplomat said during a phone call with his European counterparts and EU foreign policy chief Kaja Kallas, according to the IRNA news agency.
Otherwise, Iran would respond appropriately to this "unjustified action," Araghchi added.
Possible countermeasures by Tehran include ending cooperation with the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) and withdrawing from the Treaty on the Non-Proliferation of Nuclear Weapons (NPT).
At the heart of the nuclear dispute with Iran is the international community's concern over the potential construction of an Iranian nuclear bomb. Tehran regularly denies these suspicions.
In a joint statement, the foreign ministers of Germany, France and the UK said the steps towards a reintroduction of sanctions had to be taken because "Iran has no civilian justification for its high enriched uranium stockpile."
The statement added: "Its nuclear programme therefore remains a clear threat to international peace and security." In a five-page letter to the UN Security Council, the trio highlighted numerous violations by the Islamic Republic.
Since 2019, Tehran has upgraded its entire nuclear infrastructure and accumulated 408 kilograms of uranium enriched to 60%, the document said.
Source: Qatar Tribune
