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Updated July 30th, 2021 at 00:06 IST

'Nuclear talks with Iran cannot go on indefinitely', says US State Secy Antony Blinken

On Thursday, US Secretary of State stated that nuclear discussions with Iran cannot go on indefinitely, but that the US was absolutely prepared to resume talks.

Reported by: Rohit Ranjan
Antony Blinken
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On Thursday, US Secretary of State Antony Blinken stated that nuclear discussions with Iran "cannot go on indefinitely," but that the US was "absolutely prepared" to resume talks. Iran's talks with world powers to resuscitate a nuclear deal that provided Iran with some reprieve from international sanctions in exchange for curbs on its nuclear programme are being mediated by the US.

In 2018, then-US President Donald Trump destroyed the accord by unilaterally withdrawing from it and imposing harsh sanctions. Blinken said during a visit to Kuwait on Thursday that they are dedicated to diplomacy, but this process cannot go on indefinitely. 

Since April, Iranian President Hassan Rouhani's team has been meeting with major powers in Vienna to discuss re-entering the accord. However, a settlement now appears improbable until early next month, when he transfers over to President-elect Ebrahim Raisi who is a hardline conservative and indicated the support for the nuclear talks, stating that Iran needs the US sanctions lifted.

Khamenei stated that "trusting the West does not work"

Iran's ultraconservative side, which holds a deep aversion to the US, has frequently chastised Rouhani over the 2015 nuclear deal. Ayatollah Ali Khamenei, Iran's supreme leader, warned on Wednesday that "trusting the West does not work," referring to the US departure from the nuclear deal and its consequences.

Raisi has stated that his government will accept talks that "protect national interests," but that negotiations for the sake of negotiations will not be allowed. The lack of the 2015 deal to address Iran's ballistic missile development or its alleged meddling in regional affairs was one of Trump's key criticisms. Non-nuclear problems have never been included in the accord, which is formally known as the Joint Comprehensive Plan of Action. Khamenei also chastised the United States for refusing to "promise that they will not break the pact in the future" by unilaterally withdrawing, as Trump did in 2018. 

Joe Biden is willing to return to the nuclear deals

US current President Joe Biden has indicated his willingness to return to the nuclear deal and has held indirect conversations with Iran in addition to formal talks with the agreement's remaining members, the United Kingdom, China, France, Germany, and Russia. 

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Published July 30th, 2021 at 00:06 IST

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