On Friday, the United States' State Department sent a report signed by Secretary of State Antony Blinken to the Congress, claiming that restoration of the waivers would help the talks in Vienna, Austria, to revive the 2015 nuclear deal officially known as the Joint Comprehensive Plan of Action (JCPOA).
Mike Pompeo, the former US Secretary of State, cancelled the waivers related to Bushehr Nuclear Power Plant, Arak Heavy Water Reactor Facility, and Tehran Research Reactor in May 2020.
The State Department announced that such a waiver is in line with the interests of the United States with the aim of restricting Iranians' nuclear activities.
US State Department spokesman Ned Price tweeted, "We did NOT provide sanctions relief for Iran and WILL NOT until/unless Tehran returns to its commitments under the JCPOA."
Even though Western media outlets tried to describe the sanctions waiver as a good gesture by the US ahead of resumption of the Vienna Talks, it is worth mentioning that such moves do not have any economic profit for Iran; thus, they should not be considered as a goodwill signal by the Americans.
The US is the one who withdrew from the JCPOA in May 2018 and reimposed unilateral sanctions on Iran, which led to the current situation in implementing the internationally recognized agreement.
However, if the US seeks to reduce sanctions and maximum pressure, it should lift part of economic sanctions to allow Iranians to have access to their financial assets abroad.
The Biden administration refused Iran's access to its financial resources overseas amid fighting with COVID-19 pandemic.
Iran's Minister of Foreign Affairs Hossein Amirabdollahian reacted to the US' measure, stating that Tehran has sent messages to the Americans that they should show their good faith in action which means that the United States is expected to really lift parts of sanctions because what is written on paper is good but not sufficient.
Secretary of the Supreme National Security Council of Iran Ali Shamkhani also twitted that real and verifiable economic profit is a necessary condition to reach an agreement, so a showcase of lifting sanctions cannot be considered as a constructive act.
Moreover, the United States has imposed nearly 1700 sanctions on Iran; the restoration of limited sanction waivers would not be of great importance to affect the Vienna talks.
The Americans may pursue to sow discord among Iranians because some parts of the Iranian society might see the move as a goodwill gesture by the US and others might rule it out.
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