Tabnak – There’s just a few days left to the deadline for the US administration to declare its decision regarding the Iranian Nuclear Deal (JCPOA). Meanwhile, increasing threats from Washington against the deal has sparked reactions in Iran as well as the international community.
US President Donald Trump is set to deliver a speech on Iran this week in which he is expected to decline to certify Iran’s compliance in the landmark 2015 agreement, referring it to Congress, and perhaps targeting Iran’s Revolutionary Guard with new sanctions.
Meanwhile, the head of Iran’s nuclear agency warned the United States on Tuesday against undermining the 2015 nuclear deal, saying international nonproliferation efforts as well as Washington’s international standing would suffer as a result.
According to the Associated Press, Iranian nuclear chief Ali Akbar Salehi told an international conference on enhancing nuclear safety that Washington’s recent "delusionary negative postures do not augur well” for keeping the deal intact.
He said Iran didn’t want to see the deal unravel but that "much more is at stake for the entire international community than the national interests of Iran.”
On the other hand, Spokesman for the Iranian Administration Mohammad Baqer Nobakht praised the Islamic Revolution Guards Corps for its vital role in the country, warning the US that any hostile measure against such an anti-terror organization would further reveal Washington’s support for terrorism.
He took a swipe at the US government for its plan to designate the IRGC as a terrorist organization, saying a realistic view affirms that the IRGC is fighting against terrorism and safeguarding the Iranian nation.
But it’s not been the only Iranian reaction to the new US threats. Ali Akbar Velayati, an adviser to Iran’s Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei also said that "The Americans are too small to be able to harm the Revolutionary Guards.” "We have all options on the table. Whatever they do, we will take reciprocal measures,” he added.
In another reaction, IRGC commander Gen. Mohammad Ali Jafari said on Sunday that if Washington designated the Guards a terrorist organization, they "will consider the American army to be like Daesh (ISIS) all around the world.”
Iran’s Foreign Minister was another Iranian official who took a position on the issue. Mohammad Javad Zarif said Iran purposefully excluded its military capability from the nuclear deal, as "it is not intended as leverage or a bargaining chip in future negotiations.”
In an article published in the Atlantic on Monday Zarif added: "No party or country need fear our missiles … unless it intends to attack our territory.”
The US administration has faced two 90-day certification deadlines to state whether Iran is meeting the conditions needed to continue enjoying sanctions relief under the deal and has both times backed away from a showdown. But Trump more recently has said he does not expect to certify Iran’s compliance with the October deadline looming.
Washington also aims to put more pressure on the IRGC, especially over its missile program. Trump said in September that recent IRGC missile tests illustrated the weakness of the nuclear deal reached by his predecessor Barack Obama. This is while no part of JCPOA is related to Iran’s missile program of military capabilities.
