Tehran increases pressure on European signatories to the historic 2015 nuclear pact before weekend deadline.

Iranian officials ratcheted up pressure before a weekend deadline for European nations to come up with a solution for Iran to sell its oil abroad after the United States withdrew from a 2015 nuclear deal and reimposed devastating sanctions.

President Hassan Rouhani threatened on Wednesday to take additional steps and accelerate its nuclear activities if Europe fails to provide a solution by Friday.

“Iran’s third step is of an extraordinarily significant nature,” Rouhani said, without detailing what that would entail, adding a “decree will be announced today or tomorrow”.

“I see that it’s unlikely a conclusion will be reached with Europe today or tomorrow,” he said, suggesting European powers have another two months to resume talks to save the landmark nuclear accord.

“They know what we want, and we know what they want.”

A short time after Rouhani’s statement, US officials announced new sanctions on Iran, this time targeting a shipping network it said was run by Iran’s Revolutionary Guard to allegedly smuggle oil.

In two separate moves already, Iran reduced its commitments outlined in the deal and vowed further measures unless the European signatories of the pact did more to protect Tehran from the effects of the US “maximum pressure” sanctions campaign.

The nuclear deal – agreed on by Iran, Britain, China, France, Germany, Russia and the US – offered Tehran relief from many international sanctions in exchange for accepting curbs on its nuclear programme.

Since Washington pulled out of the deal last year and reimposed sanctions, Iran has insisted it wants to save the pact but has demanded the remaining signatories – especially the Europeans – provide additional economic support.

Iranian oil

The statements came as Iranian officials appeared to give mixed signals in response to a French proposal to save the agreement by offering Iran about $15bn in credit lines until the end of the year if Tehran comes fully back into compliance.

Iranian officials initially said they were considering the French plan when news of it emerged on Tuesday. Deputy Foreign Minister Abbas Araqchi appeared to back its main terms on Wednesday.

“Our return to the full implementation of the nuclear accord is subject to the receipt of $15bn over a four-month period, otherwise the process of reducing Iran’s commitments will continue,” the semi-official news agency Fars quoted Araqchi as saying.

“Either Europe has to buy oil from Iran or provide Iran with the equivalent of selling oil as a credit line guaranteed by Iran’s oil revenues, which in some sense means a pre-sale of oil,” he added.

Soon after, Iran’s English-language Press TV issued a short report stating: “Iran has rejected a $15bn loan offered by EU,” without giving further details. Western and Iranian sources had described the French plan as the offer of a credit line, not a loan, although the precise details have not been made public.

Brian Hook, the US State Department coordinator on Iran, ruled out the French-proposed credit line.

“We did sanctions today. There will be more sanctions coming. We can’t make it any more clear that we are committed to this campaign of maximum pressure and we are not looking to grant any exceptions or waivers,” said Hook.

Diplomatic efforts

US sanctions imposed after US President Donald Trump withdrew from the deal have curbed Iran’s oil exports and sent its economy into freefall, while what is left of the accord steadily unravels.

At the same time, tensions have spiked across the Gulf over mysterious tanker explosions, the shooting down of a US military surveillance drone by Iran and the US deploying more troops and fighter jets to the region.

The International Atomic Energy Agency confirmed last week that Iran’s stockpile of low-enriched uranium still exceeds the amount allowed by the deal.

The UN agency also said Iran continues to enrich uranium up to 4.5 percent, above the 3.67 percent allowed under the JCPOA but still far below weapons-grade levels of 90 percent.

French President Emmanuel Macron is leading talks seeking relief for Iran and de-escalation of tensions. This week, Foreign Minister Mohammad Javad Zarif travelled to Moscow while Araghchi went to Paris and elsewhere in Europe to press for a solution.

Little seems to have come out of those trips.

Meanwhile, Iran’s Ministry of Foreign Affairs spokesman Abbas Mousavi told Iranian state television that Tehran will free seven crew members of the seized British-flagged tanker Stena Impero on humanitarian grounds.

“We have no problem with the crew and the captain and the issue is violations that the vessel committed,” Mousavi said.

The Swedish-owned Stena Impero was seized by Iran’s Revolutionary Guards on July 19 in the Strait of Hormuz waterway for alleged marine violations, two weeks after Britain seized an Iranian tanker off the territory of Gibraltar.

That ship was released in August.