Iran says nuke deal, sovereignty-related issues are not negotiable

TEHRAN, Dec. 20 (Xinhua) -- Iran said Wednesday that the door for diplomatic dialogue with the United States is still open, but the nuclear deal and other sovereignty-related issues are not negotiable.

Behrouz Kamalvandi, spokesman for Iran's Atomic Energy Organization (AEOI), told Xinhua in an interview that the 2015 Iranian nuclear deal "benefits all sides," so it is the responsibility of all parties to preserve it.

The deal, known as the Joint Comprehensive Plan of Action (JCPOA), was reached between Iran and a group of world powers, including five permanent members of the UN Security Council - China, Britain, France, Russia and the United States - and Germany.

Under the deal, Iran agrees to halt its nuclear weapon development in exchange for the lifting of all nuclear-related economic sanctions.

It took years of negotiation and the wisdom of many politicians and diplomats to reach the nuclear deal, Kamalvandi noted.

"It is not ideal. We wanted more. We wanted less limitation. We wanted fewer responsibilities and commitments and more from other sides. But the United States, of course, might have also given the same answer," he said.

U.S. President Donald Trump on Oct. 13 refused to certify Iran's compliance with the nuclear accord, leaving the U.S. Congress to decide within 60 days whether to reimpose the nuclear-related sanctions lifted since the signing of the deal.

But the U.S. Congress let the deadline pass last week without taking any steps, kicking the ball back to Trump to decide if he will continue to waive the sanctions on Iran. Enditem