Iranian President Hassan Rouhani yesterday said the US had failed to undermine a nuclear deal between Tehran and major powers, and hailed the accord as a “long-lasting victory” for Iran, state television reported.
US President Donald Trump on Friday delivered an ultimatum to European signatories of the deal to fix the “terrible flaws” of the agreement with Iran, or the US would pull out.
“The American administration has failed to undermine the nuclear deal... Trump, despite his repeated efforts, has failed to undermine the accord... The deal is a long-lasting victory for Iran,” Rouhani said in a speech broadcast live on state television.
Photo: Reuters
He made the remarks during the closing ceremony of the Farabi Award at the Iran International Conference Center in Tehran, an annual event held by the Iranian Ministry of Science, Research and Technology to reward individuals who have made outstanding contributions to Islamic humanities.
On Friday, Trump agreed to waive sanctions against Iran for the last time to give the US and European allies a final chance to amend the pact.
Iran said the nuclear deal is not renegotiable and it is to stick to the accord as long as the other signatories respect it, but would “shred” the deal if Washington pulls out.
Under the deal, Iran agreed to curb its nuclear program in exchange for the lifting of most sanctions.
In other news from Tehran, a burning Iranian tanker listing for days off the coast of China after a collision with another vessel sank yesterday, with an Iranian official saying there was “no hope” of survival for the 29 missing sailors onboard.
State television quoted Mahmoud Rastad, the chief of Iran’s maritime agency, as saying: “There is no hope of finding survivors among the [missing] 29 members of the crew.”
The cause of the collision, 257km off the coast of Shanghai, remains unclear.
Three bodies have been recovered from the sea, leaving 29 crew members still unaccounted for. The crew was all Iranian expect for two Bangladeshis.
Additional reporting by staff writer and AP
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