Augusto Santos Silva said the government saw the agreement as a “positive instrument” to “stop Iran getting its own nuclear weapons”.

He warned that the USA’s decision that President Donald Trump announced on Tuesday could have negative consequences by isolating Iran and lead to an increase in conflicts in the Middle East.

The Iran deal was concluded in July 2015 between Iran and the group of 5+1 (the five permanent members of the UN Security Council – USA, Russia, China, France and the UK, plus Germany) to exchange international sanctions for Iran not developing its nuclear arsenal.