Iran abandons compromises in latest Vienna nuclear talks; US still 'hopeful' about deal

Iran has abandoned “any of the compromises” in The Joint Comprehensive Plan of Action [JCPOA] talks in Vienna that it had made during the 2015 nuclear deal and has instead adopted a harsher stance walking back on all concessions struck during previous negotiations. The talks have ended up in a stalemate, US State Department officials told agencies. Opting a pessimistic tone regarding the latest round of talks held to revive the 2015 Iran nuclear deal, the European and US officials have said that Tehran pushed to countermand the terms reached in the agreement between the P5+1+EU leaving all entities partaking disappointed. 

"Iran right now does not seem to be serious about doing what's necessary to return to compliance with the 2015 agreement, which is why we ended this round of talks in Vienna," Secretary of State Antony Blinken said Friday at a presser after the talks in the presence of agencies' reporters. "We will see if Iran has any interest in engaging seriously, but the window is very, very tight.”

Iran's hardline govt maximised demands, abandoned compromises

Parties involved in the agreement’s negotiation—the European Union, France, Germany, Russia, and China gathered in the Austrian capital for the seventh round of talks aimed at salvaging the 2015 Joint Comprehensive Plan of Action and bringing Tehran on side of compliance with renewed negotiations.

The new, hardline Iranian government, though, maximised demands abandoning previous compromises. The long-awaited talks to restore the comprehensive nuclear pact unilaterally scrapped by the former Trump administration over Iran’s breach of terms in relation to the nuclear stockpiling approximately three years ago stopped short at ending discussions, altogether. 

The United States warned on Saturday, December 4 that it will not allow Iran to “slow walk” the international negotiations, at the same time enriching the uranium. Tehran “does not seem to be serious,” a senior US administration official, told a presser after he returned from the Austrian capital Vienna where talks resumed last week to bring Iran to comply.

“Iran did not show the posture of a country that is seriously thinking of a rapid return to the 2015 accord,” the unnamed official stated, according to SCMP. “We can’t accept a situation in which Iran accelerates its nuclear programme and slow walks its nuclear diplomacy,” said the official,  – echoing warnings by US Secretary of State Antony Blinken and mirroring concerns voiced by European counterparts. 

The said official, part of the negotiations, although stated that Washington has shown patience despite that Iran continues to “accelerate nuclear programme in particularly provocative ways.” "What getting ready [for the Vienna talks] meant was to come with [a] proposal that walked back any of the compromises that Iran had floated pocket all of the compromises that others, the US in particular, had made and then asked for more," the official said during a phone briefing, as per ANI.

A deal 'still possible' 

The US, however, still thinks that a nuclear deal is still possible. "I want to emphasize, we have not reached that point," the official stressed when asked whether it may be possible that the deal would salvage and cannot be restored. Washington still thinks there is still an opportunity "to come back," and this is the best and quickest course, the official iterated. 

Tehran this week returned to the negotiation table “with proposals that walked back any of the compromises that Iran had floated during the six rounds of talks,” the European and US officials told reporters. They accused Iran of seeking to “pocket all of the compromises that others – the US in particular – had made and then ask for more” although the parties involved did not pull the plug on talks yet. The United States will pursue its efforts at diplomacy should the negotiations fail, an official familiar with the development and part of the talks reportedly informed. 

Image: AP