Iran's Zarif says Tehran not pulling out of nuclear deal

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Iran will reduce some "voluntary" commitments within its nuclear deal with world powers as a response to members' inability to resist U.S. pressure, but will not withdraw from it, state media on Wednesday quoted Foreign Minister Mohammad Javad Zarif as saying.

Iran's state media said earlier Tehran would write to the countries still signed up to the deal – Britain, France, Germany, Russia and China – on Wednesday to give them details about plans to "diminish its commitments" under the deal.

"Iran's future actions will be fully within the (nuclear deal), from which the Islamic Republic will not withdraw," Zarif said, according to state media. "The European Union and others ... did not have the power to resist U.S. pressure, therefore Iran ... will not carry out some voluntary commitments."

Signed Contract of Comprehensive Plan of Action with signatures of Chinese Foreign Minister Wang Yi, French Foreign Minister Laurent Fabius, German Foreign Minister Frank-Walter Steinmeier, EU High Representative for Foreign Affairs and Security Policy Federica Mogherini, Iranian Foreign Minister Mohammad Javad Zarif, Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov, British Foreign Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs, Philip Hammond and U.S. Secretary of State John Kerry, Vienna, Austria, July 14, 2015‍. /VCG Photo

French presidential sources warned on Tuesday that European powers will turn to a dispute mechanism that could reimpose international sanctions on Iran if Tehran reneges on parts of the 2015 nuclear deal with world powers.

"We do not want Tehran to announce tomorrow actions that would violate the nuclear agreement, because in this case we Europeans would be obliged to reimpose sanctions as per the terms of the agreement," a French source said.

France, Germany and Britain, the European signatories to the agreement that lifted sanctions against Tehran in exchange for restrictions on Iran's atomic activities, have scrambled to save the deal amid U.S. efforts to isolate Tehran since it announced its withdrawal a year ago.

However, the three have repeatedly warned Iran that it must comply with all aspects of the deal and most importantly the elements related to nuclear activity.

China, also a signatory to the Iran nuclear deal, has repeatedly reiterated that all sides should continue maintaining and implementing the Iran nuclear deal and expressed strong opposition to Washington's unilateral sanctions against Tehran.

(With input from Reuters)