The US State Department is waiving sanctions on Iran's civilian nuclear program in a technical step necessary to return to the 2015 nuclear agreement, a senior official said Friday.

Iran PressAmerica: The resumption of the waiver, ended by the Donald Trump administration in 2020, "would be essential to ensuring Iran's swift compliance" if a new deal on controlling Tehran's nuclear program can be reached in talks in Vienna, the State Department official said.

The waiver allows other countries and companies to participate in Iran's civilian nuclear program without triggering US sanctions on them, in the name of promoting safety and on-proliferation.

The civilian program includes the country's increasing stockpiles of enriched uranium.

"Absent this sanctions waiver, detailed technical discussions with third parties regarding disposition of stockpiles and other activities of nonproliferation value cannot take place," the official said, insisting on anonymity.

The decision came as talks to restore the 2015 Joint Comprehensive Plan of Action, or JCPOA, which former President Trump unilaterally withdrew from in 2018, were at an advanced stage.

The US has sof far refuse to sign the Non-Proliferation Treaty (NPT). 

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