The talks which are in the eighth round are aimed at reaching an agreement to remove US sanctions against Iran in return of Tehran’s returning to full compliance with the Joint Comprehensive Plan of Action (JCPOA), informally known as Iran nuclear deal.
Iran’s top negotiator Ali Bagheri Kani had separate bilateral meetings on Friday with deputy EU foreign policy chief Enrique Mora and Russia’s representatives in the talks Mikhail Ulyanov.
He also had a meeting with heads of delegations of three European countries participating in the JCPOA, i.e. France, Germany, and the UK.
Meanwhile, other sessions were held in Vienna on experts level to discuss various issues, including termination of sanctions and Iran’s return to full compliance.
In another occasion on Friday morning, representatives of P4+1 and the US (without Iran) met to evaluate the latest situation with the talks.
“The Western colleagues, as they do it publicly, underlined the need to finalise negotiations ASAP. Russia shares the sense of urgency but is against artificial deadlines,” Ulyanov said in a tweet on Friday.
French Foreign Minister Jean-Yves Le Drian said on Thursday that the talks should speed up and “cannot continue at such a slow pace”.
Foreign ministers of Germany and the US had similar statements, depicting the talks as being in an urgent stage and setting deadlines for the talks.
On the other hand, China and Russia have put weight behind Iran on its logical demand for verification and assurances on sanctions removal and have rejected the West’s setting deadlines for the talks.
Iran has been insistent on its demands, arguing that the US has once reneged on the JCPOA by withdrawing in 2018 and resuming sanctions against Iran.
Tehran has made it clear that it would sign a deal only if the US verifiably removes all sanctions and gives assurances that no future US administration would violate the deal.
Iranian President Ebrahim Raisi who went to Russia for a two-day trip on Wednesday said in a speech before the Russian State Duma that Iran won’t walk back the rights of its nation.
He said that Iran was serious in reaching a deal provided that the other parties were serious in effectively terminating sanctions against the Iranian nation.
Now, the talks have entered a stage where the participants should take difficult political decisions. The US and European participants of the JCPOA know that the blame game and emphasizing deadlines wouldn’t work anymore.
The Islamic Republic of Iran is seeking for a sustainable, reliable agreement that ensures the US wouldn’t exit it in the future.
Making progress in the drafts related to Iran’s nuclear commitments is indicative of Tehran’s seriousness and now the West must show seriousness by making progress in the drafts related to sanctions removal.
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