Erdogan: Iran-turkey trade to hit $30b soon
Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan expects trade with Iran t reach the $30-billion mark ‘soon’ as the two regional powers shore up relations on multiple fronts.
“Given the large-scale planning underway, we will soon reach $30 billion in trade transactions between the two countries,” the Turkish leader told visiting Iranian First Vice President Es’haq Jahangiri in Istanbul late Friday, IRNA reported.
Jahangiri was in Turkey to take part in a summit of Developing-8 countries, during which the central banks of the two countries also formally agreed to trade in national currencies. 4 Secretary General of the European External Action Service (EEAS) Helga Schmid said on Saturday the European Union sees “no alternative” to the 2015 nuclear deal between Iran and world powers.
“There is no alternative to the agreement, there is definitely no way to renegotiate it,” Schmid told a non-proliferation conference in Moscow.
According to Schmid, the EU expects all parties involved in the agreement, known as the Joint Comprehensive Plan of Action (JCPOA), to continue the implementation of all provisions of the accord.
“This agreement is working… and for the European Union, I can say that we have every interest to protect this agreement and we will continue to protect [it],” she said.
Schmid added that repudiating the deal would “negatively impact European security”.
Brussels will do its utmost to preserve the landmark agreement, the senior diplomat said, adding that she will visit Tehran personally in November to discuss the developments around the JCPOA.
Schmid also said that the European Union is supportive of Tehran’s efforts to reestablish economic ties with other countries around the world.
The JCPOA, reached between Iran, Russia, China, Germany, the United States, the United Kingdom, and France, terminated nuclear-related sanctions against Iran in return for a number of limits to the Iranian nuclear program.
But the administration of US President Donald Trump, who took office a year after the deal began being implemented, has been opposed to the agreement. On October 13, Trump refused to certify the nuclear deal and left its fate to the US Congress.
He threatened a “total termination” of the Iran accord unless Congress tightened sanctions on the country and European allies addressed US demands.
But the rest of the parties to the deal have hailed it as a diplomatic triumph and said it should be sustained. So have the entire 28 members of the EU.
Signi¿cance of Iran deal
EU foreign policy chief, Federica Mogherini, and South Korean Foreign Minister Kang Kyungwha jointly underscored the significance of the landmark agreement during a meeting in Brussels on Friday.
They “acknowledged its importance to the international nuclear non-proliferation regime,” the EU reported on its official website.
British Prime Minister Theresa May also repeated London’s commitment to the JCPOA.
Speaking at a press conference following an EU leaders’ meeting in Brussels on Friday, May said, “We believe that this agreement is important to our common security interests.”
French President Emmanuel Macron also spoke after the plenum, noting that the EU would continue to honor the agreement.
“We cooperate with the US, so they are persuaded considering the necessity of the agreement,” he said.
Macron underlined the importance of a “unified voice” for discussion of international issues, including the JCPOA, against the backdrop of a “less-clear strategy from the United States” under Trump.
During the meeting, the EU leaders reaffirmed the bloc’s support for the pact.
JCPOA vital for strategic stability
Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov on Friday warned against breaking up the Iran nuclear agreement with world powers, saying it is “vital for strategic stability.”
Lavrov said any unilateral changes to the JCPOA “could bury this agreement, which is vital for strategic stability and nuclear non-proliferation.”
Lavrov described any prospect of returning to the PREJCPOA situation as “impossible,” saying, “Restoring the UN Security Council sanctions [on Iran] is out of the question.”
He rejected the need for further inspection of Iran’s nuclear sites beyond the JCPOA requirements, noting that the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) “performs regular checks and confirms their [Iran’s] strict fulfillment of obligations.”
Touching on US demands for renegotiating the JCPOA, Lavrov stated that any changes to the deal would require the approval of all the parties to the accord, including Iran.
Iranian Deputy Foreign Minister Abbas Araqchi, who visited Moscow to discuss the implementation of the JCPOA, told journalists on Friday that Tehran would not abandon the nuclear deal before any other party.
Araqchi also rejected any need to increase the level of inspections of the Iranian nuclear sites, adding, “The deal, as well as its protocols, was clear in terms of checks and monitoring [of Iran’s nuclear sites]; all measures were agreed upon.”
Majority of Americans want to stay in Iran deal
Meanwhile, two in three Americans said Trump should not pull the United States out of the Iran nuclear deal, according to a new CNN poll.
Eight in 10 Democrats and two in three independents oppose withdrawing from the agreement. Even in the president’s own party, Republicans are evenly split, with 48% wanting to remain and 47% to withdraw.
Concern about Iran has slipped among Americans since the deal was put in place. Only three in 10 adults say the threat is “very serious,” down from nearly half, 49%, in September 2015. That marks the smallest share of those concerned in CNN polling dating back to 2000. RT, Sputnik, Press TV and CNN contributed to this report.