Foreign Minister Javad Zarif hailed the creation of the Instrument for Supporting Trade Exchanges (INSTEX) by the three European signatories to the 2015 nuclear agreement. "Iran welcomes INSTEX - a long overdue first step - in E3 implementation of May 2018 commitments to save [the] JCPOA by ensuring dividends for Iranians after [the] U.S.' illegal re-imposition of sanctions", he tweeted, adding that "we remain ready for constructive engagement with Europe on equal footing and with mutual respect".