The US and the European Union (EU) must return to a full compliance with the Joint Comprehensive Plan of Action (JCPOA), Iranian ambassador to the UN told reporters at its headquarters in New York.

“Now it is time for the US and the EU to live up to their responsibilities and return to the full compliance with the JCPOA. The choice is theirs. We hope they seize this opportunity,” Majid Takht Ravanchi said on Tuesday.

The ambassador made the remarks after the UN Security Council’s biannual meeting on the JCPOA, or the Iranian deal, and Resolution 2231, which was adopted by the Security Council on July 20, 2015 endorsing the JCPOA on Iran’s nuclear programme, Xinhua news agency reported.

“We heard strong messages of support for the JCPOA’s restoration,” the envoy said.

“To refresh our memory about the underlying causes of the current situation, the truth is that it was the US that withdrew unlawfully from the JCPOA and re-imposed sanctions,” he stressed.

“Iran has complied with its commitments and has done much more than its fair share to preserve the JCPOA,” he added.

The ambassador underscored that “the only solution is the commitment of all parties to the full, effective, and verifiable implementation of the Joint Comprehensive Plan of Action; no more, no less — as we have stated time and again.”

“Obviously, Iran must be assured that all sanctions will be lifted; the US will not withdraw from the accord again, and it will not abuse the procedures set out in the JCPOA and Resolution 2231,” said Ravanchi.

The Iranian team at the Vienna talks “is serious and well-prepared to engage meaningfully and constructively with the other sides and hopes to see the same approach from them,” the ambassador said, adding that the Vienna talks can succeed only through genuine political will and good faith negotiations.

“Engaging in blame game or showing artificial impatience is not constructive,” he noted.

“While the Vienna talks are moving forward, we must all work together to come to an acceptable and good agreement in Vienna as soon as possible,” said the ambassador.