President-elect Joe Biden has reiterated his pledge to reenter the Iranian nuclear deal if Tehran returns to strict compliance, adding that he would bring in Iran’s Arab neighbors for follow-on negotiations over the country’s nuclear constraints and missile program. 

“Look, there’s a lot of talk about precision missiles and all range of other things that are destabilizing the region,” Biden told New York Times columnist Thomas Friedman in an interview. “The best way to achieve getting some stability in the region” is to address Iran’s nuclear program.

Known officially as the Joint Comprehensive Plan of Action, or JCPOA, the landmark nuclear deal struck by Iran, the United States and five other world powers in 2015 required Tehran to scale back its nuclear activities in return for sanctions relief.

President Donald Trump in 2018 unilaterally withdrew from the accord in the hopes of replacing it with a tougher deal that would address Iran’s ballistic missile production and role in the regional conflicts. Since the US exit from the deal and imposition of harsh economic sanctions, Iran has steadily increased its stockpiles of low-enriched uranium in violation of the deal.