Tehran, May 21, IRNA – Foreign Minister Mohammad-Javad Zarif said on Saturday that US and EU should take more practical steps to implement the Joint Comprehensive Plan of Action (JCPOA).


Zarif made the remarks in reaction to a statement released by the US Secretary of State John Kerry and foreign ministers of the European states reaffirming commitment to JCPOA.

'The statement released by the US Secretary of State John Kerry and foreign ministers of three European states in New York indicated that the governments abide by their JCPOA commitments. However, they are expected to take practical steps as well,' Zarif said in a joint press conference with New Zealand counterpart Murray McCully.
He said that the parties to JCPOA have undertaken to eliminate barriers to banking cooperation.
'We have not yet achieved what we were supposed to do and more steps should be taken by the US. Over the past weeks and months, we have reached considerable success to achieve our own national economy targets including the Economy of Resistance in tune with terms of the post-JCPOA era.'
He said that economic institutes are remarkably willing to cooperate with Iran and widescale presence of major economic institutes along with political delegations from various countries show interest of the international community to cooperation with Iran.
Zarif said that the barriers on the way of Iran's economic cooperation with other countries in the past decade were mainly because of the US hostile policies and of the sanctions imposed by Washington are getting eliminated.
'Of course, part of the sanctions were lifted as per the context of the JCPOA, but, something should be done in practice by the US in parallel with the statement of foreign ministers parties to JCPOA.'

By IRNA