UNITED NATIONS, September 27. /TASS/. United Nations Secretary General Antonio Guterres met on Wednesday with Iranian President Hassan Rouhani and spoke in support of the Iran nuclear deal, the United Nations press office said.
"The Secretary-General met with H.E. Mr. Hassan Rouhani, President of the Islamic Republic of Iran," the press office said. "The Secretary-General reiterated his support for the Joint Comprehensive Plan of Action (JCPOA) and the implementation of Security Council resolution 2231 (2015)."
The Joint Comprehensive Plan of Action (JCPOA), known as the deal on Iran’s nuclear program, was signed between Iran and six international mediators (the United Kingdom, Germany, China, Russia, the United States, and France) on July 14, 2015. On January 16, 2016, the parties to the deal announced beginning of its implementation. Under the deal, Iran undertakes to curb its nuclear activities and place them under total control of the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) in exchange of abandonment of the sanctions imposed previously by the United Nations Security Council, the European Union and the United States over its nuclear program.
In May 2018, US President Donald Trump announced Washington’s decision to withdraw from the deal, saying it leaves Iran a possibility to create a nuclear bomb bypassing all the restrictions. He warned the United States would reinstate its old anti-Iranian sanctions and would imposed new ones. The first round of sanctions covering Iran’s automotive sector and trade in gold and metals was re-imposed overnight to August 7. Further sanctions are to come into effect from November 4 in a bid to reduce Iran’s oil revenues to zero.
Meanwhile, other signatories to the deal - Russia, China, France, Germany and the United Kingdom - condemned the United States’ move and reiterated their commitment to the JCPOA.
