Iran's Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei stated on Monday that European signatories of the nuclear deal were deceiving Tehran, a local TV broadcasted cited the official as saying.
"America's enmity towards Iran is obvious. Our enemies' heart is full of enmity towards the Islamic Republic… our officials should not be deceived by the Europeans… don't be fooled by Europeans," Khamenei said.
READ MORE: Iran Criticises EU Trade Mechanism Aimed at Bypassing US Sanctions — Zarif
He also warned the officials and advised them "to exercise caution [in dealing with Europe] so that they will not be tricked by them and cause problems for the country."
His remark comes after Iranian Foreign Minister Mohammad Javad Zarif stated on Sunday that Tehran couldn't act as the only side that's trying to preserve the accord, therefore, Europe needed "to get wet if it wants to swim against the dangerous tide of US unilateralism".
At present, Iran is engaged in talks with the EU bloc as they work on creating a trade mechanism that would allow the parties to continue trade relations amid US sanctions.
In May 2018 the United States announced its unilateral withdrawal from the Iran nuclear deal and reimposition of sanctions. In August and November, two packages of sanctions came into effect with the aim of forcing Tehran to negotiate a new agreement. Washington's decision was not supported by other signatories to the deal — China, France, Germany, Iran, Russia, the United Kingdom, and the European Union — which insisted on Tehran's compliance with the deal.
