US not changing 'sanctions compliance standards' as part of nuclear deal, envoy says

Earlier report said European draft proposal would decrease US sanctions on IRGC

'Any report to the contrary is flat out wrong,' Robert Malley said on Twitter. AFP

US Special Envoy for Iran Robert Malley on Friday said Washington has not negotiated plans to change “due diligence” or other sanctions compliance standards as part of the revival of a deal to curb Tehran's nuclear programme.

“We have not engaged in any negotiation about changing due diligence, know-your-customer or other US sanctions compliance standards for sanctions that would remain under a mutual return to full JCPOA implementation,” Mr Malley said on Twitter, referring to the Joint Comprehensive Plan of Action, the formal name for the 2015 nuclear deal.

“Any report to the contrary is flat out wrong.”

Mr Malley did not explicitly say what his comments were referring to.

Hours earlier, however, a Politico report said that a European draft proposal for the revival of the nuclear deal would decrease American sanctions on Iran's Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps.

Before the Politico article was published, Iranian state media and officials also said that talks were continuing on the IRGC sanctions and whether they would be lifted as part of the deal.

Major powers are awaiting Tehran's response to a proposal submitted on July 26 by EU foreign policy chief Josep Borrell.

Britain, China, France, Germany, Iran and Russia, as well as the US indirectly, resumed talks on the nuclear accord last week after a months-long hiatus.

The EU-co-ordinated negotiations to revive the deal began in April 2021 before coming to a standstill in March.

The bloc said on Tuesday that it expected Tehran and Washington to “very quickly” respond to a “final” text aimed at salvaging the 2015 deal.

Agence France-Presse contributed to this report