Tehran: Iran has announced the possibility of withdrawing from the Non-Proliferation Treaty (NPT) should the UN Security Council trigger a snapback of sanctions against the country. This statement was made by Deputy Foreign Minister for Political Affairs Majid Takht-Ravanchi, as revealed by a top Iranian lawmaker after a crucial parliamentary meeting.
According to Islamic Republic News Agency, the announcement followed a meeting of the Parliament’s National Security and Foreign Policy Committee. The committee’s spokesman, Ebrahim Rezaei, shared that Takht-Ravanchi, along with Deputy Foreign Minister for International Affairs Kazem Gharibabadi, addressed the latest developments surrounding the 2015 nuclear agreement, also known as the Joint Comprehensive Plan of Action (JCPOA). Rezaei conveyed Takht-Ravanchi’s statement that Iran’s potential countermeasure to a sanctions snapback could involve leaving the NPT.
The meeting focused on recent negotiations in Geneva between Iran and the three European signatorie
s of the JCPOA-Britain, France, and Germany. Originally agreed upon by Iran and five world powers, the JCPOA aimed to limit specific aspects of Iran’s nuclear program in return for lifting international sanctions.
The discussions in Geneva were prompted by the previous U.S. administration’s withdrawal from the JCPOA in 2018, under then-President Donald Trump’s ‘maximum pressure’ campaign, which re-imposed economic sanctions on Iran. Rezaei further quoted Takht-Ravanchi, highlighting that the talks aimed to establish a framework for negotiations, though a resolution remains distant.
In addition to nuclear discussions, Takht-Ravanchi noted that other geopolitical issues, such as the Palestinian and Lebanese situations and the ongoing conflict in Ukraine, were also on the agenda during the Geneva talks.
