Iran not willing to attend EU-brokered talks with US on nuclear deal

The Iranian foreign ministry on February 28 announced that it is not willing to attend EU-brokered talks with the United States over the future of the Iran nuclear deal because Washington has not done enough to lift sanctions against Tehran. According to The Guardian, the foreign ministry spokesperson, Saeed Khatibzadeh said that considering the recent positions and actions of the US and three European countries, Iran “does not consider” that this is the time to hold an “informal meeting” proposed by the European coordinator of the UNSC. 

Khatibzadeh added that there has been no change in the US position and behaviour yet, and the Biden administration has not only “abandoned” Trump’s failed policy of maximum pressure, but it has not even announced its commitment to fulfilled its responsibilities in the UN resolution 2231. Further, the Iranian spokesperson said that the implementation of the obligation of all parties in the nuclear deal signed in 2015 is “not a matter of negotiation and trade-offs” since all that was made five years ago. “The road ahead is very clear: The United States must end its illegal and unilateral sanctions and return to its commitments,” Khatibzadeh said. 

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Iranian spokesperson also added that the deal does not require negotiations or a resolution in the board of governors of the IAEA. He said that Iran would remain in touch with the EU’s foreign affairs chief, Josep Borrell. 

The Biden administration, on the other hand, is committed to returning to the 2015 nuclear deal. US has said that it was willing to attend talks but would discuss what it would take to lift US sanctions at the negotiating table, and not before. It said that it needed to know what measures Tehran would accept to come back into compliance with the deal. 

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2015 nuclear deal 

It is worth noting that the 2015 nuclear deal has been largely in tatter since Donald Trump withdrew from it unilaterally in 2018 and reimposed harsh sanctions as part of a policy of “maximum pressure” on Iran. Iran has maintained that it has only pursued a civilian nuclear energy programme. However, Trump withdrew from the deal and bolstered sanctions on Tehran in a bid to force them into talks on a broader agreement that also addressed its ballistic missile programs and support for proxies around the Middle East. 

The material, on the other hand, can be used to build the core of a nuclear weapon. The 2015 nuclear deal forbids producing uranium metal or researching and developing uranium metallurgy for 15 years. The production of uranium metal also complicated any potential diplomacy between Tehran and the new US administration when each government has staked out negotiating positions that put the onus on the other side to take the first conciliatory step. 

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