Russia: US looking for reasons to harm Iran nuclear deal

Ryabkov was responding to US Vice President Mike Pence who this week said Washington will "not remain silent on Iran" and called for a replacement to the 2015 Iran nuclear agreement, AFP reported.

"If (the US) is looking for reasons to increase pressure on Iran that have nothing to do with the (nuclear) deal, and that's how it looks like from what we see, then this is an unworthy method that should not be used by a great power," Ryabkov said.

The 2015 Iran deal gave Iran sanctions relief in exchange for curbs on its nuclear program.

"We see no reason whatsoever to change the Iran deal," he added.

Earlier this week Ryabkov warned Washington against interfering in Iran's "internal affairs" after US President Donald Trump pledged to help Iranians "take back" their government following protests.

"Destructive” proposal

The Russian official also criticized as "harmful and destructive” a US proposal for holding an extraordinary meeting of the UN Security Council on protests in Iran. 

"Iran's domestic affairs have nothing to do with the United Nations Security Council’s role” Ryabkov said, adding that Moscow "see no role” for the world body "in this issue.”

He also stressed that the UNSC must exert its efforts in maintaining "international peace and security”, which are its real roles in the world.

Ryabkov’s comments came after US Ambassador to the UN Nikki Haley said earlier this week that Washington was seeking emergency sessions to be held on Iran at the UN in New York and at the UN Human Rights Council in Geneva, Switzerland. "The UN must speak out,” she said at the time.

Protests over economic problems broke out in Iran's second largest city Mashhad on December 28 and spread across the country.

US misreading Iran situation

Wendy Sherman, the US lead negotiator for the Iran nuclear agreement, also protested Washington’s efforts to kill the deal, saying that the US president is misreading the current situation in Iran.

In an article published in Time magazine, she said President Donald Trump has taken aim once again at the Iran nuclear deal following the outbreak of protests in cities there, renewing the possibility that the United States might walk away from the landmark multilateral agreement.

The president and his allies are undoubtedly inclined to think that now is a good time to kill the deal. But this would be a fundamental misreading of the situation, Sherman said.

She said that the Iran deal is wildly popular among the Iranian people. They saw the deal as an important step in improving the economy.

She also underlined that the Iranian people are speaking for themselves. We should not attempt to speak for them.

Source:Irandailynews