DUBAI, Jan 16 — Iran’s foreign minister said today three European states had succumbed to US threats of new tariffs on their goods when they triggered a dispute mechanism in a nuclear pact, a step that could lead to the re-imposition of United Nations sanctions.

The pact, or JCPOA, was agreed in 2015 between Tehran and world powers. US President Donald Trump withdrew from the deal in 2018 and imposed stringent US sanctions on Iran, telling Tehran he wanted a new broader deal on nuclear and other issues.

"Appeasement confirmed. E3 sold out remnants of #JCPOA to avoid new Trump tariffs. It won’t work my friends. You only whet his appetite. Remember your high school bully?” Iranian Foreign Minister Mohammad Javad Zarif wrote on Twitter.

The Washington Post reported yesterday that the Trump administration had threatened to impose a 25 per cent tariff on European automobile imports if Britain, France and Germany did not formally accuse Iran of breaking the 2015 nuclear deal. — Reuters