Russia praises Iran’s “patience” in fulfilling its commitments under a 2015 multilateral nuclear agreement following Washington’s much-criticized exit from the landmark deal, saying Tehran’s “responsible approach” merits respect.

The comments were made by Moscow’s delegation to the Third Session of the Preparatory Committee for the 2020 Review Conference of the Parties to the Treaty on the Non-Proliferation of Nuclear Weapons (NPT) at the UN headquarters in New York, the Russian Foreign Ministry said in a statement on Tuesday.

Moscow further said Iran chose to exercise “patience” and “restraint” and adopt a “responsible approach to fulfilling its obligations, despite constant provocations and blackmail,” adding that Tehran’s stance deserves to be “commended and respected,” the statement added.

It also emphasized that Iran’s “successful” implementation of the deal’s nuclear provisions is a “crucial contribution” to strengthening the nuclear non-proliferation regime.

Elsewhere in the statement, Russia welcomed the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA)’s “professional and impartial” approach in carrying out inspections of Iranian nuclear sites as part of the implementation of the nuclear deal, officially known as the Joint Comprehensive Plan of Action (JCPOA).

Since the JCPOA’s conclusion almost four years ago, the IAEA regularly verified that Iran has continued to strictly comply with the restrictions on its nuclear activities under the nuclear deal, including by proactively providing the UN nuclear agency’s inspectors with access to all nuclear facilities, it added.

In a quarterly report in February, the IAEA once again reaffirmed Iran's compliance with its nuclear-related commitments under the JCPOA, even as the United States re-imposed sanctions against Tehran.

Despite Iran’s full compliance with the deal, the US under President Donald Trump withdrew in May 2018 from the JCPOA, which was reached between Iran and the five permanent members of the United Nations Security Council – the United States, France, Britain, Russia and China – plus Germany in July 2015.

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Afterwards, Washington re-imposed unilateral sanctions on Iran that had been lifted under the deal, despite objections from the other signatories — including its own allies — along with the entire world community.

The remaining parties to the JCPOA have vowed efforts to keep the deal in place without the US.

Russia has repeatedly slammed the US for abandoning the Iran deal, saying it would leave no stone unturned to preserve the accord and blunt the impact of Washington’s anti-Iran bans.

In a meeting with his Russian counterpart Vladimir Putin in Tehran in September 2018, Iranian President Hassan Rouhani commended Russia for its role in efforts to protect the Iran deal following America’s exit.

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