High-level negotiations to revive the 2015 nuclear agreement will start this week in Vienna, according to officials from both nations, who downplayed the likelihood of success and put the onus on the other to make concessions.
Before leaving for Vienna, Iran’s lead negotiator Ali Bagheri Kani tweeted, ‘The ball is in Washington’s court to rescue the accord. Show maturity & behave responsibly.’
Regarding the U.S. decision to renege on the agreement under which Iran restricted its nuclear programme in exchange for the lifting of economic sanctions, Bagheri Kani wrote, ‘The onus is on those that breached the deal & have failed to remove themselves from gloomy legacy.’
Iran’s ambassador to the UN, Majid Takht Ravanchi, claimed that Tehran had negotiated to renew the agreement in good faith and that Washington was to blame for failing to ensure that Iran would reap the benefits of the agreement’s economic provisions.
Because the United States has not yet decided to guarantee that Iran will receive the promised economic benefits under the agreement, he said, ‘Achieving this objective has been delayed.’
Iran, he continued, ‘will discontinue its corrective activities and begin the full implementation of its nuclear-related measures when the U.S. makes the right decision.’
Rob Malley, the U.S. Special Envoy for Iran, announced his impending trip to Vienna but hinted that significant progress was unlikely.
‘Although we have realistic expectations, the EU’s efforts are appreciated, and the US is ready for a genuine effort to strike a solution. Whether Iran is prepared for the same will soon become obvious,’ he tweeted.
Malley stated that the talks will move forward based on a text recently put up by Josep Borrell, the head of foreign policy for the European Union, to resurrect the 2015 agreement.
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