Iran Press/ America: Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov held a news conference following his bid to chair a United Nations Security Council meeting, speaking to reporters on a variety of topics such as the Black Sea grain initiative and the West's sanctions campaign against Russia, among other hot-button issues.
The Tuesday presser also saw Lavrov lean into the JCPOA, which has largely been left untouched under the Biden administration despite the president's past comments that talks would be taken back up.
The Russian foreign minister further noted that "new requirements" being proposed for a revived Iran nuclear deal were continuing to complicate efforts. He added that missing the opportunity to resuscitate the agreement would be a "big mistake."
Although it initially appeared as though JCPOA talks were moving in the right direction, it quickly became clear negotiations were headed toward multiple bumps and near breakdowns.
In late March, Iran and Russia both agreed that the historic deal had no alternatives and should be reimplemented under its initial standards. Aside from Russia and Iran, the deal's signatories included China, France, Germany, the US, the UK, and the European Union.
The US withdrew from the JCPOA in 2018 under the Trump administration after then-President Donald Trump made various accusations that Tehran had violated stipulations outlined in the Obama-era nuclear deal.
In the months that followed the US withdrawal, Iran was not only affected by reimposed sanctions but later also by a "maximum pressure" campaign by the Trump White House.
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