The Joint Comprehensive Plan of Action (JCPOA), as the deal is officially called, “is far from ideal but other options are even less stable,” Merkel said during a joint press conference with Chinese Premier Li Keqiang in Beijing on Thursday.
“That is why we will continue to respect this agreement,” she added.
Germany and China have both decried US President Donald Trump’s decision to walk away from the JCPOA and are trying to find ways to protect the companies doing business with Iran from American sanctions.
Angela Merkel further highlighted Beijing’s future role to fill in the trade vacuum after the re-imposition of economic bans against Iran.
“Sanctions will likely lead some European companies to pull out of Iran,” she added.
On May 8, Trump announced Washington's pullout from the Iran nuclear deal, vowing to reinstate nuclear sanctions on Iran and impose “the highest level” of economic bans on the Islamic Republic.
Iran has said it would make a decision on its future role in the JCPOA in the coming weeks following negotiations with the other signatories of the agreement.
Tehran also wants the European parties to give assurances that Iran’s interests would still be protected under a deal without the US.