Iran: US must lift sanctions if it wants nuclear deal

Iran's supreme leader on Sunday urged the United States to lift all sanctions if it wants Iran to live up to commitments under its nuclear deal with world powers, state TV reported, his first comments on the matter since US President Joe Biden took office.

"If they (the US) wants Iran to return to its commitments America must completely lift the sanctions. Not just with words or on paper, they can't say we have lifted the sanctions, no, they must actually lift the sanctions and then we should verify this," Ayatollah Ali Khamenei said.

Former US President Donald Trump unilaterally withdrew the US in 2018 from the atomic deal, which saw Iran agree to limit its enrichment of uranium in exchange for the lifting of economic sanctions.

Biden has said he will seek to revive the deal, but insisted that Iran must first reverse its nuclear steps, creating a contest of wills between the nations.

"They (US and Europeans) can't set preconditions for the JCPOA (Joint Comprehensive Plan of Action), as they didn't carry out their commitments at all," Khamenei added on Sunday, reiterating Iranian leaders' previous remarks that sanctions must be eased before Iran comes back into compliance.

The supreme leader has the final say on all matters of state in Iran and approved the efforts at reaching the nuclear deal in 2015.

In response to Trump's so-called "maximum pressure" campaign against Iran, the country began to gradually violate its atomic commitments, and threatened further provocations in a bid to increase its leverage and get Biden to prioritise a return to the deal as he moves to dismantle Trump's legacy.

Biden has signed a series of executive actions that reverse course on a wide range of issues, including climate change and immigration.

Following the killing last December of an Iranian scientist credited with spearheading the country's disbanded military nuclear programme, Iran's parliament approved a law to block international nuclear inspectors later this month - a serious violation of the accord.

Iran also has begun enriching uranium closer to weapons-grade levels and said it would experiment with uranium metals, a key component of a nuclear warhead. The country has announced its moves and insisted that all breaches of the pact are easily reversible. Tehran says its nuclear programme is for peaceful purposes only.

Image: AP