Potential US Revision of Iranian Nuclear Deal 'Too Risky' - Moscow

Russian Deputy Foreign Minister Sergey Ryabkov stated that he did not think that the US administration had plans to completely withdraw from the nuclear deal with Iran, but would probably adhere to its current position critical of the Joint Comprehensive Plan of Action (JCPOA).

MOSCOW (Sputnik) — Potential revision of the Iranian nuclear deal by the United States could be a dangerous move, Russian Deputy Foreign Minister Sergey Ryabkov said Monday.

"I will give to the US colleagues a very simple piece of advice: do not try to fix the thing that is not broken. If someone tries to rewrite the [nuclear] agreement, he will open a Pandora's box… It seems that it would be just too risky to make an attempt to launch a new process on such a significant issue and to seek new agreement terms," Ryabkov said in an interview with the Security Index magazine.

At the same time, the Russian diplomat added that he did not think that the US administration had plans to completely withdraw from the nuclear deal, but would probably adhere to its current position critical of the Joint Comprehensive Plan of Action (JCPOA).

During the presidential race last year, Trump repeatedly criticized the nuclear agreement between Iran and a group of world powers, including the United States and Russia. The winner of the 2016 presidential election has also characterized the deal as one of the worst in history and pledged to revoke it.