• The US has sanctioned a network of Iranian petrochemical firms, as well as alleged front companies in China and the United Arab Emirates.
• The move comes amid a stalemate in talks aimed at reviving a nuclear deal.
• The 2015 deal gave Iran relief from sanctions in return for guarantees that it could not develop a nuclear weapon.

President of  Iran Ebrahim Raisi slammed the United States on Friday for imposing new sanctions on the Islamic republic’s petrochemical producers, amid a stalemate in talks aimed at reviving a nuclear deal.

The US sanctioned a network of Iranian petrochemical firms, as well as alleged front companies in China and the United Arab Emirates, on Thursday, accusing them of assisting Tehran in evading sanctions.

“I am surprised (by the behavior) of the Americans,” Raisi said, quoted by the official news agency IRNA.

“On the one hand, they send a message in favor of negotiations and agreement, and on the other hand, they lengthen the list of sanctions.

“I don’t understand how this works,” the Iranian president said.

Read More: Iran arrests leftist activist for allegedly meeting detained French couple

Iran disconnected some International Atomic Energy Agency cameras monitoring its nuclear sites this month, shortly after the US and its European allies pushed through a resolution at the IAEA denouncing Iran’s lack of cooperation.

“The world must give us the right not to trust the United States because they are violating their agreements,” Raisi said.

The 2015 deal gave Iran relief from sanctions in return for guarantees that it could not develop a nuclear weapon — something Tehran has always denied wanting to do.

Read More: Iran says still believes nuclear talks can yield deal

Under then-President Donald Trump, the US unilaterally exited the nuclear deal in 2018, imposing waves of harsh sanctions on the Islamic republic.

On Tuesday, Iran’s Foreign Minister Hossein Amir-Abdollahian stated that he still believes the nuclear talks can succeed and that diplomacy is one of the best ways to resurrect the agreement.