Iran says awaits “practical” steps by US, Europe

Addressing a news conference on the sidelines of the UN General Assembly in New York on Wednesday, Raeisi reiterated Iran's compliance with its commitments according to the nuclear deal, formally known as the Joint Comprehensive Plan of Action (JCPOA).

"Iran has never left the negotiating table and emphasizes that the US and European countries should return to their obligations (under the JCPOA)," he added.

He regretted that the US and its Western allies pinned their hope on last year’s riots in Iran and left the negotiating table, which was a miscalculation.

"If the Americans are ready to fulfill their commitments, the ground will be prepared for [achieving] progress in the interactions and reaching a good agreement," Raeisi said.

Iran proved the peaceful nature of its nuclear program to the world by signing the JCPOA with six world powers. However, Washington’s exit in May 2018 and its subsequent re-imposition of sanctions against Tehran left the future of the deal in limbo.

Multilateral diplomatic efforts to revive the JCPOA have been stalled since August 2022, with Iran blaming the United States for refusing to remove the sanctions that the nuclear deal had lifted and also failing to guarantee that it will not leave the deal again.

The Iranian president also touched on the country’s uranium enrichment activities and said, "The nuclear program is completely peaceful and international observers also have always verified this issue."

Raeisi rejected Western media claims about Iran increasing its uranium enrichment level, saying the country only enriches uranium to the level needed for its peaceful nuclear activities.