Arab States Should Partake in Settling Iran Nuclear Deal Issue - Egypt

CAIRO (Sputnik) - Egypt follows the developments around the Joint Comprehensive Plan of Action (JCPOA), known as the Iranian nuclear deal, and hopes that Arab states will be engaged in settlement of this issue, the Egyptian Foreign Ministry said in a statement.

"Egypt stresses importance of the involvement of the concerned Arab states in any dialogue on the future of the Middle East, particularly, in relation to possible changes to the Iranian nuclear deal," the statement read.

Cairo urged Iran and regional states to avoid any steps that could undermine security in the Middle East or lead to military confrontations, according to the statement.

On Tuesday, US President Donald Trump announced the United States would no longer remain part of the JCPOA and promised to re-impose the highest level of economic sanctions against Iran in response to Tehran's development of nuclear program.

READ MORE: Iran Nuclear Deal 'Not Dead,' 'There's a Real Risk of Confrontation' — French FM

Meanwhile, the UAE welcomed Trump's decision to withdraw from the deal, as it did not guarantee that Iran would not acquire nuclear weapon in future, according to the country's Foreign Ministry's statement. The decision was also welcomed by Saudi Arabia and Israel.

In response to the US move, Iranian President Hassan Rouhani said on Tuesday that Tehran was not going to withdraw from the JCPOA, and that the agreement remained between Iran and the five remaining participants of the deal. He noted that the United States never fulfilled the obligations under the nuclear deal, unlike Iran.

On July 14, 2015, the European Union and the P5+1 group of countries — China, Germany, France, Russia, the United Kingdom and the United States — signed the JCPOA with Iran. The accord stipulated a gradual lifting of anti-Iranian sanctions in exchange for Tehran curbing its nuclear program and allowing inspections to ensure that the nature of the program is peaceful.