MNA – The EU foreign policy chief says that the 28 member states of the EU along with the rest of the international community are working to preserve Iran nuclear agreement.







“We are working, as a union of 28 member states and with the rest of the international community, to preserve a nuclear agreement that has so far been implemented in full, as certified by the International Atomic Energy Agency in 13 consecutive reports,” EU’s High Representative of the European Union for Foreign Affairs and Security Policy Federica Mogherini said in an interview with the ‘livemint’ news website on Tuesday.

Mogherini explained her reasons for remaining committed to the nuclear deal with Iran, which is also known as the Comprehensive Plan of Action or the JCPOA, citing EU's collective security as the prime reason.

The EU foreign policy chief further explained EU’s willingness to continue legitimate trade with Iran under the JCPOA despite risk of US sanctions, saying “part of this work requires us to guarantee that firms wanting to do legitimate business with Iran are allowed to do so. This is what we are working on right now: tools that will assist, protect, and reassure economic actors pursuing legitimate business with Iran. It is true that this situation has triggered a conversation on European economic sovereignty. We Europeans cannot accept that a foreign power — even our closest friend and ally — makes decisions over our legitimate trade with another country. This is a basic element of sovereignty, and it is only natural that this reflection takes place, not only in Europe but in other parts of the world, too.”

Elsewhere in the interview, she again referred to Iran in response to a question regarding the impact that the Britain’s exit from the EU will have on the EU’s security, saying “we continue to work together [with Britain] when it comes to preserving the Iran nuclear deal.”