Iran confident about lifting of US sanctions by Washington despite deadlock

An Iranian government spokesperson on Saturday said the country is confident the United States will soon lift all economic sanctions. This comes amid the deadlock between Tehran and Washington on who should make the first move to revive the 2015 nuclear deal, which was ended by Donald Trump's administration in 2018.  Iranian government spokesman Ali Rabiei on Saturday said Tehran believes the US will soon lift the sanctions. 

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'US must end sanctions' 

The United States wants Iran to return to its commitment before talks on the revival of the nuclear deal could begin. However, Tehran insists on the lifting of all US-sponsored embargos before both parties could return to negotiating table. Iran also wants no changes in the 2015 nuclear deal and wants to resume as it is. Earlier, Iranian foreign ministry spokesperson Saeed Khatibzadeh said the US must end the sanctions first then Tehran will respond. 

"US unconditionally & effectively lift all sanctions imposed, re-imposed or re-labeled by Trump. We will then immediately reverse all remedial measures," Iranian foreign minister Javad Zarif said on Twitter on February 20. 

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In a positive development on Thursday, the United States informed the United Nations Security Council that it was withdrawing Trump-era letters that called for the restoration of "UN sanctions" on Iran. Last September, the then US State Secretary Mike Pompeo had sent three letters to the UNSC calling for the restoration of UN sanctions on Iran. However, the 15-member body rejected Washington's demand saying it longer has the authority to call for UN embargos because it left the 2015 nuclear deal. 

Read: Biden Withdraws Trump's Restoration Of UN Sanctions On Iran

Former US President Donald Trump had withdrawn the United States from the Joint Comprehensive Plan of Action (JCPOA), which signed between UNSC members and Iran in 2015. Donald Trump called the deal "horrible" and said the US would work with its allies to find a long-lasting solution. 

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