President Joe Biden has voiced support for returning to the accord, from which his predecessor Donald Trump exited, but has insisted that Tehran first return to full compliance by reversing measures it took to protest Trump's sanctions.

Foreign Minister Mohammmad Javad Zarif, who has previously demanded an end to sanctions before Iran acts, offered a way forward during an interview on CNN International.

"You know clearly there can be a mechanism to basically either synchronize it, or coordinate what can be done," he told interviewer Christiane Amanpour.

Zarif said that EU foreign policy chief Josep Borrell should play a role in his role of coordinator of the Iran deal -- which also included Britain, France and Germany as well as Russia and China.

Borrell should lay out "the actions that are needed to be taken by the United States and the actions that are needed to be taken by Iran," Zarif said.

He can "sort of choreograph the actions that are needed to be taken by the United States and the actions that are needed to be taken by Iran," Zarif said.

Secretary of State Antony Blinken at a news conference on taking office last week warned that the return of the nuclear deal would "take some time" as Iran first needed to "come back into compliance."