TEHRAN, Iran -- Iran said Saturday it won't accept any changes to its 2015 nuclear deal with world powers after President Donald Trump vowed to pull out of the accord in a few months if European allies did not fix its "terrible flaws." In a statement carried by the state-run IRNA news agency, the Foreign Ministry said Iran "will not accept any change in the deal, neither now nor in future," adding that it will "not take any action beyond its commitments."

It also said Iran would not allow the deal to be linked to other issues, after Mr. Trump suggested that the sanctions relief under the deal be tied to Iran limiting its long-range ballistic missile program.

Mr. Trump on Friday extended the waivers of key economic sanctions that were lifted under the agreement limiting Iran's nuclear program. But he said he would work with European allies to remove so-called "sunset clauses" that allow Iran to gradually resume advanced nuclear activities in the next decade.

"Today, I am waiving the application of certain nuclear sanctions, but only in order to secure our European allies' agreement to fix the terrible flaws of the Iran nuclear deal," Mr. Trump said. "This is a last chance. In the absence of such an agreement, the United States will not again waive sanctions in order to stay in the Iran nuclear deal. And if at any time I judge that such an agreement is not within reach, I will withdraw from the deal immediately. No one should doubt my word."

He paired Friday's concession with other, targeted sanctions on Iran for human rights abuses and ballistic missile development. The Treasury Department's action hits 14 Iranian officials and companies and businessmen from Iran, China and Malaysia, freezing any assets they have in the U.S. and banning Americans from doing business with them.

The Iranian statement said the targeting of one of the officials, judiciary chief Sadegh Amoli Larijani, "crossed all behavioral red lines of the international community." It said the sanctions are against international law and go against U.S. commitments, saying they would bring a "strong reaction" from Iran.

The 2015 nuclear accord, reached after months of painstaking negotiations with the U.S., Britain, France, Germany, China and Russia, lifted international sanctions in exchange for Iran limiting its nuclear program. Mr. Trump has repeatedly criticized the accord, while Iran has accused the U.S. of failing to comply with it. The next sanctions waivers are due in May.</s>Media playback is unsupported on your device Media caption A timeline of what Trump has said about the Iran deal

US President Donald Trump says he is extending sanctions relief for Iran one last time so Europe and the US can fix the nuclear deal's "terrible flaws".

The waiver he will sign suspends US sanctions on Iran for another 120 days.

The White House wants EU signatories to agree permanent restrictions on Iran's uranium enrichment. Under the current deal they are set to expire in 2025.

Iran's Foreign Minister Mohammad Javad Zarif said it was a "desperate attempt" to undermine a "solid" deal.

Germany said it would continue to call for the deal's full implementation and would consult on a "common way forward" with the UK and France.

Mr Trump also wants Iran's ballistic missile programme to be addressed.

"This is a last chance," the US president said in a statement on Friday. "In the absence of such an agreement, the United States will not again waive sanctions in order to stay in the Iran nuclear deal.

"And if at any time I judge that such an agreement is not within reach, I will withdraw from the deal immediately."

Also on Friday, the US imposed separate sanctions against 14 Iranian individuals and entities it accuses of rights abuses, censorship and support for weapons proliferators.

The US still maintains sanctions on Iran - independent of the nuclear deal - on matters such as terrorism, human rights and ballistic missile development.

What is the deal?

The landmark accord was signed between six global powers and Iran in 2015.

It saw Iran agree to reduce uranium enrichment activity drastically, dispose of its enriched uranium stocks and modify a heavy water facility so it could not produce material suitable for a nuclear bomb.

In return, decades of international and US nuclear-related sanctions were suspended, and the US president must sign a waiver suspending them every 120 days.

But Mr Trump has repeatedly criticised the deal - reached under his predecessor Barack Obama - as "the worst ever".

What does the US want?

Senior Trump administration officials briefed reporters on Friday to say the president will work with European partners to broker an agreement limiting Iran's ballistic missiles activities.

Mr Trump is prepared to back a modification to the existing deal if it was made permanent, one official said.

The president also wants the US Congress to amend a law on US participation in the nuclear deal, so that Washington could reimpose all sanctions if Iran breaches certain "trigger points".

This will involve negotiations between the US and its European allies rather than talks with Iran, the official said.

BBC state department correspondent Barbara Plett Usher is sceptical that any international agreement can be negotiated in 120 days.

She says Iran is not interested in brokering a new deal, so Mr Trump will have either to back down or walk away.

Déjà vu

Analysis by Jonathan Marcus, BBC diplomatic correspondent

Some four months ago when President Trump refused to re-certify the Iran deal he passed the baton to Congress while keeping the agreement in place.

This time he has put the ball in the Europeans' court expecting Britain, France and Germany to come up with some accord that will, as he sees it, fix the deal's shortcomings.

While they worry about Iran's missile programmes and its regional activities, the Europeans believe the nuclear accord itself is working well. Furthermore even if they could come up with a follow-on agreement in a ludicrously short space of time, there is simply no chance of Iran agreeing to it.

So in another four months we will be back exactly where we are now. Mr Trump will have the problematic task of either re-imposing sanctions - effectively killing the nuclear accord - or of having to extricate himself from a problem of his own making.

Is the current deal working?

In October, President Trump refused to certify that Iran was in compliance with the accord, accusing the country of "not living up to the spirit" of the pact.

However, UN inspectors have certified nine times that Iran has not breached the deal.

European Union foreign policy chief Federica Mogherini, who helped broker the agreement, said on Thursday that the accord is "making the world safer".

She said it was also "preventing a potential nuclear arms race in the region".

What does Iran say?

Iran said on Friday that Mr Trump was "maliciously violating" the deal.

Foreign Minister Mohammad Javad Zarif said: "Trump's policy & today's announcement amount to desperate attempts to undermine a solid multilateral agreement."

Tehran has vowed to stick to the accord as long as the other signatories respect it, but to "shred" it if Washington pulls out.

Iran says the missiles it has tested are not designed to carry nuclear warheads and insists its nuclear programme is a peaceful one for energy purposes.

What did the rest of the world say?

After Mr Trump's announcement, Germany said it would "continue to campaign for the full implementation of the nuclear agreement".

French President Emmanuel Macron phoned Mr Trump on Thursday to call for "the strict application of the deal and the importance of all the signatories to respect it".

In Russia, Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov said the pact was "the result of a consensus among many parties".

The accord can be seen as "either good or bad, but it is the only one that reflects this consensus," Mr Peskov said on Friday, ahead of Mr Trump's announcement.</s>Iran on Saturday rejected any modification of its nuclear deal with world powers after US President Donald Trump demanded tough new measures to keep the agreement alive.

Iran “will not accept any amendments in this agreement, be it now or in the future, and it will not allow any other issues to be linked to the JCPOA,” the foreign ministry said in a statement, using the 2015 deal’s technical name.

Trump again waived nuclear-related sanctions on Friday — as required every few months to stay in the agreement — but demanded European partners work with the United States to “fix the deal’s disastrous flaws, or the United States will withdraw”.

He said the new deal should curb Iran’s missile programme and include permanent restrictions on Iran’s nuclear plants, removing expiration dates due to kick in after a decade.

But Iran’s Foreign Minister Mohammad Javad Zarif said the 2015 deal could not be renegotiated.

“JCPOA is not renegotiable: rather than repeating tired rhetoric, US must bring itself into full compliance — just like Iran,” Zarif tweeted immediately after Trump’s speech.

The statement from his ministry further criticised new sanctions on 14 individuals announced by the US Treasury on Friday over human rights issues and Iran’s missile programme.

In particular, placing judiciary chief Ayatollah Sadegh Larijani on the sanctions list “crossed all red lines of conduct in the international community… and the government of the United States will bear responsibility for all the consequences of this hostile move”.

Iran argues that continued US sanctions on non-nuclear areas such as human rights and missile testing have effectively barred Iran from gaining many of the financial benefits expected from the deal.

Zarif has said Trump’s aggressive stance on the deal and Iran generally have also violated the commitment to “refrain from any policy specifically intended to directly and adversely affect the normalisation of trade and economic relations with Iran” in the accord.</s>A White House official said Donald Trump now wants to work with America's European allies. (File)</s>Iran has said it will not accept any changes to its 2015 nuclear deal with world powers after US president Donald Trump vowed to pull out of the accord if European allies do not fix its “terrible flaws”.

The Iranian foreign ministry said it “will not accept any change in the deal, neither now nor in future”, adding that it will “not take any action beyond its commitments”.

On Friday, Mr Trump extended the waivers of key economic sanctions that were lifted under the agreement limiting Iran’s nuclear programme.

However, he said he would work with European allies to remove so-called “sunset clauses” that allow Iran to gradually resume advanced nuclear activities in the next decade.</s>DUBAI (Reuters) - Iran said on Saturday it would retaliate against sanctions imposed on its judiciary head by the United States as President Donald Trump stepped up efforts to ‘fix’ a nuclear deal between Tehran and major powers.

Trump said on Friday he would waive nuclear sanctions against Iran for the last time to give Washington and its European allies a chance to fix the “terrible flaws” of the 2015 nuclear deal.

Washington also announced sanctions against 14 entities and people, including the head of Iran’s judiciary, Ayatollah Sadeq Larijani.

“The Trump regime’s hostile action (against Larijani)... crossed all red lines of conduct in the international community and is a violation of international law and will surely be answered by a serious reaction of the Islamic Republic,” Iran’s Foreign Ministry said in a statement carried by state media.

On Friday, Iran’s Foreign Minister Mohammad Javad Zarif said on Twitter on that Trump’s decision undermined the multilateral agreement.</s>TEHRAN, IRAN—Iran said Saturday it won’t accept any changes to its 2015 nuclear deal with world powers after U.S. President Donald Trump vowed to pull out of the accord in a few months if European allies did not fix its “terrible flaws.”

In a statement carried by the state-run IRNA news agency, the Foreign Ministry said Iran “will not accept any change in the deal, neither now nor in future,” adding that it will “not take any action beyond its commitments.”

It also said Iran would not allow the deal to be linked to other issues, after Trump suggested that the sanctions relief under the deal be tied to Iran limiting its long-range ballistic missile program.

Opinion | Tony Burman: The Canadian case for building bridges with Iran</s>DUBAI - Iran said on Saturday it would retaliate against sanctions imposed on its judiciary head by the United States as President Donald Trump stepped up efforts to 'fix' a nuclear deal between Tehran and major powers.



Trump said on Friday he would waive nuclear sanctions against Iran for the last time to give Washington and its European allies a chance to fix the "terrible flaws" of the 2015 nuclear deal.



Washington also announced sanctions against 14 entities and people, including the head of Iran's judiciary, Ayatollah Sadeq Larijani.



"The Trump regime's hostile action (against Larijani)... crossed all red lines of conduct in the international community and is a violation of international law and will surely be answered by a serious reaction of the Islamic Republic," Iran's Foreign Ministry said in a statement carried by state media.



On Friday, Iran's Foreign Minister Mohammad Javad Zarif said on Twitter on that Trump's decision undermined the multilateral agreement.</s>TEHRAN, Iran — Iran said Saturday it won't accept any changes to its 2015 nuclear deal with world powers after President Donald Trump vowed to pull out of the accord in a few months if European allies did not fix its "terrible flaws."

In a statement carried by the state-run IRNA news agency, the Foreign Ministry said Iran "will not accept any change in the deal, neither now nor in future," adding that it will "not take any action beyond its commitments."

It also said Iran would not allow the deal to be linked to other issues, after Trump suggested that the sanctions relief under the deal be tied to Iran limiting its long-range ballistic missile program.

Trump on Friday extended the waivers of key economic sanctions that were lifted under the agreement limiting Iran's nuclear program. But he said he would work with European allies to remove so-called "sunset clauses" that allow Iran to gradually resume advanced nuclear activities in the next decade.

He paired Friday's concession with other, targeted sanctions on Iran for human rights abuses and ballistic missile development. The Treasury Department's action hits 14 Iranian officials and companies and businessmen from Iran, China and Malaysia, freezing any assets they have in the U.S. and banning Americans from doing business with them.

The Iranian statement said the targeting of one of the officials, judiciary chief Sadegh Amoli Larijani, "crossed all behavioral red lines of the international community." It said the sanctions are against international law and go against U.S. commitments, saying they would bring a "strong reaction" from Iran.

The 2015 nuclear accord, reached after months of painstaking negotiations with the U.S., Britain, France, Germany, China and Russia, lifted international sanctions in exchange for Iran limiting its nuclear program.

Trump has repeatedly criticized the accord, while Iran has accused the U.S. of failing to comply with it. The next sanctions waivers are due in May.</s>Iran on Saturday rejected any modification of its nuclear deal with world powers after US President Donald Trump demanded tough new measures to keep the agreement alive.

Iran "will not accept any amendments in this agreement, be it now or in the future, and it will not allow any other issues to be linked to the JCPOA," the foreign ministry said in a statement, using the 2015 deal's technical name.

Trump again waived nuclear-related sanctions on Friday -- as required every few months to stay in the agreement -- but demanded European partners work with the United States to "fix the deal's disastrous flaws, or the United States will withdraw".

He said the new deal should curb Iran's missile programme and include permanent restrictions on Iran's nuclear plants, removing expiration dates due to kick in after a decade.

But Iran's Foreign Minister Mohammad Javad Zarif said the 2015 deal could not be renegotiated.

"JCPOA is not renegotiable: rather than repeating tired rhetoric, US must bring itself into full compliance -- just like Iran," Zarif tweeted immediately after Trump's speech.

The statement from his ministry further criticised new sanctions on 14 individuals announced by the US Treasury on Friday over human rights issues and Iran's missile programme.

In particular, placing judiciary chief Ayatollah Sadegh Larijani on the sanctions list "crossed all red lines of conduct in the international community... and the government of the United States will bear responsibility for all the consequences of this hostile move".

Iran argues that continued US sanctions on non-nuclear areas such as human rights and missile testing have effectively barred Iran from gaining many of the financial benefits expected from the deal.

Zarif has said Trump's aggressive stance on the deal and Iran generally have also violated the commitment to "refrain from any policy specifically intended to directly and adversely affect the normalisation of trade and economic relations with Iran" in the accord.
U.S. President Donald Trump says he is extending sanctions relief for Iran one last time so Europe and the U.S. can fix the nuclear deal's "terrible flaws".