Iran has formally declared that the 2015 international nuclear agreement is over, stating it is no longer bound by the restrictions that capped its nuclear program in exchange for sanctions relief.

In a statement released Saturday, the Iranian Foreign Ministry announced the termination of the Joint Comprehensive Plan of Action (JCPOA), marking the official expiration of the deal a decade after its adoption by the UN Security Council.

"All of the provisions of the deal, including the restrictions on the Iranian nuclear program and the related mechanisms, are considered terminated," the ministry said.

The JCPOA, a landmark agreement reached between Iran and world powers, had significantly limited Iran's nuclear activity, uranium stockpiles, and research efforts. Its primary goal was to prevent Iran from developing nuclear weapons in return for the lifting of international economic sanctions.

The deal's collapse has been a protracted process. The unraveling began in 2018 when then-U.S. President Donald Trump unilaterally withdrew the United States from the agreement and re-imposed crushing sanctions on Iran.

Since then, efforts to revive the pact through stop-and-start negotiations have repeatedly stalled. Tensions escalated further in June when Iran suspended its cooperation with the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) following what it described as bombings of its nuclear facilities by the United States and Israel.

The situation came to a head in August when Britain, France, and Germany—the three European signatories to the deal, known as the E3—formally notified the UN Security Council that Iran was in "significant non-performance" of its commitments. This action triggered a "snapback" mechanism that automatically reinstated previously suspended UN sanctions.

Despite the E3's announcement last week of their intent to resume discussions for a "comprehensive, durable and verifiable agreement," Iran has shown little interest in returning to the negotiating table.

Iranian Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi was quoted in the statement as saying Tehran does "not see any reason to negotiate" with the Europeans, citing their decision to trigger the snapback sanctions as a primary reason.