Her Majesty’s Government is strongly committed to the Iran
nuclear deal, known as the Joint Comprehensive Plan of
Action or JCPoA. This deal represents the culmination of 13
years of diplomacy and was a major step towards ensuring
that Iran’s nuclear programme is only for peaceful
purposes. The JCPoA contributes to the United Kingdom’s
wider non-proliferation objectives and strengthens the
international framework in this regard.
The Government remains of the firm view that the deal is in
the security interests of the United Kingdom and the wider
region and is, most importantly, working to constrain
Iran’s nuclear ambitions. The International Atomic Energy
Agency has released eight reports on Iran's nuclear
programme since Implementation Day of the JCPoA in January
2016. In our role as a member of the Joint Commission, the
body set up to implement the deal, consisting of the E3+3
(UK, France, Germany, China, Russia, US) and Iran, and
coordinated by the European Union, we have held Iran to
account and urged continued compliance. Where Iran has
previously pushed the boundaries of the deal, it has taken
steps to remain in compliance. The most recent report of
the International Atomic Energy Agency in August 2017
confirmed that Iran continues to comply with its nuclear
related commitments under the JCPoA.
However, the Government shares serious concerns about
Iran’s ballistic missile programme and its destabilising
activity in the region. Addressing these issues is a
fundamental part of the Government’s policy towards Iran
and we will consider further appropriate measures. The
nuclear deal does not prevent us from tackling these
issues. On the contrary, removing the most dangerous threat
of nuclear weapons allows us to focus our efforts on
challenging on the other areas of Iran's destabilising
activity.
In parallel to agreeing the Joint Comprehensive Plan of
Action in July 2015, Her Majesty’s Government has been
rebuilding bilateral relations with Iran in order to
address issues of disagreement as well as discuss areas of
agreement and cooperation. Both the United Kingdom and Iran
reopened Embassies in London and Tehran in August 2015 and
we upgraded to Ambassadorial relations in September 2016.
We remain very concerned about dual British-Iranian
nationals who are detained in Iran and on whose cases we
continue to press for improvement at the highest levels.
Both the Prime Minister and Foreign Secretary have raised
these cases personally with their Iranian counterparts and
will continue to do so.
Her Majesty’s Government will continue to make the case for
the JCPoA with its partners, including the United States,
and is committed to ensuring its success in delivering both
our security objectives and delivering sanctions relief for
the Iranian people, while we also work to tackle our
broader concerns. The Government is encouraging the US
Administration and Congress to consider the implications to
the security of the US and its allies before taking any
further steps that might undermine or weaken the JCPoA.
