IRAN Minister of Foreign Affairs Javad Zarif, one of the top officials involved in the nation’s 2015 nuclear deal, announced his resignation Monday after five-and-a-half years in the position.

The state-run IRNA news agency confirmed that Zarif had announced his resignation on his Instagram page. The 59-year-old wrote he was “very grateful to the gracious love of the dear and brave people of Iran for the last 67 months” and apologized for “the incapacity to continue serving and all the shortcomings during the service.”

The post did not specify why Zarif was stepping down.

Zarif was the driving force behind the nuclear deal with six world powers, including the United States. That deal is now on the verge of collapse after U.S. President Donald Trump withdrew America from the accord last year. His resignation leaves Iranian President Hassan Rouhani without one of his main allies in pushing the Islamic Republic toward more negotiation with the West.

(SD-Agencies)