Tehran, Iran – Iran’s currency has been sharply depreciating again as European powers push to reinstate United Nations sanctions against the country amid stalled diplomacy and fears of war with Israel and the United States.The US dollar hit a price of more than 1.06 million rials in Tehran’s open currency market on Monday, slightly higher than before Tehran and Washington started mediated negotiations in April.The Iranian government and central bank have once again said the sharp decline of the embattled national currency is not due to a fall in economic activity, and rather reflects a psychological reaction to deteriorating political conditions.France, Germany and the United Kingdom, the remaining European parties to Iran’s 2015 nuclear deal with world powers, have triggered the “snapback” mechanism of the accord that could automatically reinstate UN sanctions lifted in exchange for curbs on Iran’s nuclear programme.The European allies have now effectively given Iran a one-month deadline to negotiate an agreement that could defer snapback for a year or less.The conditions include resuming negotiations with the US, allowing UN inspectors access to its nuclear sites, and accounting for the 408.6kg (900.8 pounds) of highly enriched uranium the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) says the country has.Iran, which has long maintained that its nuclear programme is peaceful, has said the Western allies have demanded conditions that must be the outcome of negotiations, not the starting point, so they cannot be met. A …
