Russian FM wants Iran nuclear deal to remain intact
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E-mail Xinhua, September 23, 2017
Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov said Friday that the international agreement on Iran's nuclear program should remain as it is.
"The re-opening (re-negotiation) of the JCPOA is not wanted by us, nor by China, France, Germany and the UK," Lavrov told reporters, using the official name of the July 2015 agreement, which was reached between Iran and the five countries as well as the United States.
Such a move would be "a very wrong signal to North Korea," he said.
"Right now North Korea is being told: renounce the nuclear weapons and we will lift the sanctions. If this agreement on the Iran nuclear deal will fall apart, North Korea would say: why do I need to negotiate with you if you do not carry out your promises?"
The Iran nuclear deal was something done and should not be taken back, said Lavrov.
He said German Foreign Minister Sigmar Gabriel made a convincing case on Thursday in his speech to the General Assembly, quipping that he did not want to "plagiarize."
Gabriel said the Iran nuclear deal is not only about Iran, but also about the credibility of the international community.
"Which state would refrain from developing its own nuclear program if it turns out that negotiated agreements do not endure, and confidence in agreements with the international community is not worth the paper they are written on?" he asked. "How are we going to convince countries like North Korea that international agreements provide them security, and in so doing make them commit to further disarmament efforts, if the only international example for such an endeavor being successful -- the agreement with Iran -- no longer has effect?"
The calls for the preservation of the Iran nuclear deal came after U.S. President Donald Trump threatened to pull out of the agreement. In his speech to the General Assembly on Tuesday, he called the deal "an embarrassment."
On the nuclear issue of the Korean Peninsula, Lavrov deplored the lack of efforts toward the establishment of a peace and security mechanism in Northeast Asia.
"If we started to talk about this mechanism, if we started this process to shape this peace and security mechanism in Northeast Asia, probably we would have a permanent channel of communication with North Korea," said Lavrov.
With this channel, Pyongyang would have a better perception of the concerns of the other parties of the six-party talks -- China, Japan, South Korea, the United States and Russia -- and the five countries would have a better understanding of the concerns of Pyongyang, he said. "It is always much better to meet and discuss each other's proposals. It is so much better than isolating, intimidating and threatening someone."
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