IRAN NUCLEAR AGREEMENT (Syllabus: GS Paper 2 – International Relations)

Context: Iran's President recently said that his country will never give up its right to have peaceful nuclear energy and urged the United States to demonstrate in a verifiable fashion that it wants to return to the 2015 nuclear deal.

Iran Nuclear Agreement

• About: It is a landmark accord reached between Iran and several world powers, including the United States, in July 2015, effective from 2016. 
• Also known as: Joint Comprehensive Plan of Action (JCPOA).
• Agreement: Iran agreed to dismantle much of its nuclear program and open its facilities to more extensive international inspections in exchange for billions of dollars’ worth of sanctions relief.

o It also agreed to implement a protocol that would allow inspectors from the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) to access its nuclear sites to ensure Iran would not be able to develop nuclear weapons in secret.

• Brokered by: 5 permanent members of the UN Security Council (China, France, Russia, the United Kingdom, and the United States) and Germany—collectively known as the P5+1. The European Union also took part.
• Withdrawal of USA: Former President Donald Trump withdrew the United States from it in 2018. 
• Significance of JCPOA for India: Energy security, Regional connectivity, Peaceful environment etc.