Iran press/Iran - ‘As world marks Int’l Day against Nuclear Tests, let’s remember that only nuclear bombs in our region belong to Israel and the US; the former a habitual aggressor the latter the sole user of nukes,’ Iranian Foreign Minister Mohammad Javad Zarif tweeted on Wednesday.
‘Let’s also remember that Iran has called for Nuclear Weapon Free Zone since 1974,’ Iranian Foreign Minister added.
The UN nuclear watchdog IAEA has on several occasions verified peaceful nature of Iran’s nuclear program under the JCPOA, to which Iran has remained committed since it went into force.
The JCPOA stands for Joint Comprehensive Plan of Action, the official name of the agreement reached between Iran and six world major powers in 2015 to give Tehran sanctions relief in return for scaling back its nuclear program.
In early May, Trump withdrew US from Iran’s 2015 nuclear deal with the Sextet (the five permanent members of the UNSC plus Germany) and reinstated sanctions against Tehran, despite the other signatory states' call for keeping the agreement in place.
Part of the US illegitimate sanctions were imposed on Iran on August 9.
Under the JCPOA, Iran undertook to put limits on its nuclear program in exchange for the removal of nuclear-related sanctions imposed against Tehran.
Since the US president pulled Washington out of the nuclear deal, European countries have been scrambling to ensure that Iran gets enough economic benefits to persuade it to stay in the deal. The remaining parties have vowed to stay in the accord.
Iran filed a lawsuit against the U.S., alleging that the U.S. President Donald Trump administration’s decision to hit the country with new sanctions after withdrawing from the Iran nuclear deal was in violation of a decades-old treaty.
The ICJ -- set up in 1946 to rule in disputes between countries -- is expected to take a couple of months to decide whether to grant Tehran's request for a provisional ruling, while a final decision in the case may actually still take years.
Read More:
Today: Top UN court to Hear Iran’s Lawsuit against US sanction
Top UN court to rule in favor of Iran: Zarif
