France's Macron says Europe likely to reimpose sanctions on Iran soon

"In late August, France, Germany and the United Kingdom initiated a 30-day process to reimpose sanctions in the absence of a negotiated deal on Iran's nuclear programme. France's President Emmanuel Macron said major European nations will likely reimpose international sanctions on Iran by the end of the month. When asked in an interview on Israel's Channel 12 on Thursday if the so-called snapback sanctions would be triggered, Macron responded in the affirmative, claiming that Iran's efforts to avoid them were not serious."

"Under the deal, which they all signed, together with the United States, China, Russia and the European Union, Tehran agreed to scale back its nuclear programme in exchange for relief from international sanctions. However, in 2018, during his first term in office, US President Donald Trump unilaterally withdrew from the agreement and reimposed sanctions on Iran."

"In late August, France, Germany and the United Kingdom known as the E3 initiated a 30-day process to reimpose sanctions in the absence of a negotiated deal on the Iranian nuclear programme. Iran has called the E3's decision unjustified, illegal and lacking any legal basis. The three European nations, the continent's largest economies, initially committed to maintaining the 2015 accord. But now, they accuse Iran of violating its provisions, alleging that Tehran has amassed a uranium stockpile exceeding the 2015 agreement's limit by more than 40 times."

In late August France, Germany and the United Kingdom launched a 30-day process to reimpose sanctions if no negotiated deal emerges on Iran's nuclear programme. President Macron said snapback sanctions will likely be triggered by the end of the month and said Iran's efforts to avoid them were not serious. Iran called the E3 decision unjustified, illegal and lacking legal basis. The three European powers accuse Iran of breaching the 2015 JCPOA and claim Tehran's uranium stockpile exceeds the JCPOA limit by over 40 times. The 2015 deal saw Iran scale back its programme in exchange for sanctions relief. The foreign ministers and the EU foreign policy chief held a phone call with Iran's counterpart.

Read at www.aljazeera.com