The US has told Iran that if it wants sanctions relief beyond that of the 2015 nuclear deal, it must first address US concerns beyond the pact.
“We are not negotiating in public but if Iran wants sanctions lifting that goes beyond the JCPOA, they will need to address concerns of ours beyond the JCPOA,” a State Department representative said on Thursday, referring to the 2015 Joint Comprehensive Plan of Action.
The State Department response came after Iran insisted that its Islamic Revolutionary Guards Corps (IRGC) be removed from a US terrorism list.
The US insisted this month that the IRGC's elite Quds Force would remain on its designated list of terrorist groups.
Gen Mark Milley, chairman of the US Joint Chiefs of Staff, recently told a congressional hearing that the Quds Force, the overseas operations arm of the IRGC, should not be dropped from the terrorist list.
“If they do not want to use these talks to resolve other bilateral issues beyond the JCPOA, then we are confident that we can very quickly reach an understanding on the JCPOA and begin reimplementing the deal,” the State Department representative said.
