Iran to cut nuclear commitments ‘strongly’ if Europe does not keep promises

GENEVA: If European countries do not meet their commitments under a nuclear deal then Iran will "strongly" take more steps to reduce its own obligations, a senior Iranian parliamentarian said on Thursday, according to the semi-official Fars news agency.

US President Donald Trump withdrew from the 2015 deal last year and reimposed sanctions to pressure Iran to negotiate further on its nuclear program as well as on its ballistic missiles and regional policy.

Iran threatened on Monday to restart deactivated centrifuges and ramp up uranium enrichment to 20% purity, a move that would go far beyond the small steps Iran has taken in the past week to nudge stocks of fissile material just beyond limits in the pact.

"In the event that Europe does not act on its commitments during the 60-day time span which we are currently in, Iran will take the third step strongly," Mojtaba Zolnour, the chairman of parliament's National Security and Foreign Policy commission, said, according to Fars.

Installing new centrifuges are possible steps, Zolnour said.

Separately, Foreign Minister Mohammad Javad Zarif said on Thursday there would be no negotiations with the United States as long as sanctions are in place.

"We never left the negotiating table_ (the Americans) decided to leave the negotiating table and now they make a false claim in order to deceive that they are ready for negotiations," Zarif said, according to the IRIB news agency. "We will not negotiate with those who are taking part in economic terrorism against our people. They must stop this."