Khamenei Tells U.S. to Act, Not Talk, as Nuclear Deal Flounders

(Bloomberg) -- Iran’s Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei told the U.S. it has to act on its promise to rejoin the 2015 nuclear deal and not just use words, as Iran is days away from curtailing international inspections on its atomic activities.

“We’ve heard a lot of great words and promises, which were violated and the opposite of which was carried out,” Khamenei said in a speech shown on state TV on Wednesday and in a reference to former President Donald Trump’s decision to abandon the accord in 2018.

“This time around, it’s only about action. If we see action, we too will take action. The Islamic Republic won’t get convinced by words and promises like in the past,” Khamenei said, reiterating Iran’s pledge to also reverse a significant ramp-up in its atomic activities that started in response to Trump’s efforts to destroy the nuclear deal.

Khamenei Says U.S. Must Move First on Iranian Nuclear Deal

The comments come after the International Atomic Energy Agency said Iran had formally notified its Director General, Rafael Mariano Grossi, on Monday that it would cease implementing the so-called Additional Protocol, a voluntary set of measures Iran agreed to as part of the 2015 deal and which allows the United Nations body to carry out much more intrusive inspections, often at very short notice.

Earlier on Wednesday, President Hassan Rouhani said that nuclear inspectors would still be able to visit Iran as usual because the IAEA’s comprehensive safeguards, which account for declared nuclear material, would continue. He welcomed an offer from Grossi to visit Tehran to discuss the matter and said he could come to Iran at anytime.

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