New round of nuclear talks to begin in Vienna on Monday
Negotiations to revive the JCPOA between Iran and world powers will resume in Vienna on Monday, January 26. Western diplomats say that due to Iran's advances in nuclear technology, the JCPOA has no more than a few weeks left.
The European Union announced that negotiators between Iran and the remaining countries in the JCPOA, who are trying to revive the nuclear deal, will resume their talks in Vienna on Monday, December 27.
Representatives of the Islamic Republic and the five remaining countries in the nuclear agreement held six rounds of negotiations from mid-April to late June 2021 to revive the Joint Comprehensive Plan of Action (JCPOA).
The seventh round of Vienna talks resumed on December 26 (December 17) with the negotiating team of Ebrahim Raisi's government after a break of several months.
In a joint statement, the European countries that are parties to the nuclear deal (Britain, France, and Germany) cited Iran's request as the reason for the suspension of negotiations, calling it a disappointing move.
Ali Bagheri Kani, Deputy Foreign Minister for Political Affairs and head of the Islamic Republic's negotiating team, has denied this accusation and stated that the suspension of negotiations is in accordance with previous agreements by all parties.
According to the German news agency, Western diplomats believe that only a few weeks remain before the 2015 agreement, known as the Joint Comprehensive Plan of Action (JCPOA), expires, as Iran's advances in nuclear technology no longer leave room for negotiation.
Iranian Foreign Minister Hossein Amir-Abdollahian said on Thursday, welcoming the continuation of the Vienna talks on Monday: "The opposing sides should not hesitate that if they want to give one concession and get 10, the Islamic Republic of Iran will never succumb to this method."
US officials have clearly stated that if the Vienna talks fail to yield results, they will impose more severe sanctions against the Islamic Republic of Iran.
Mohammad Eslami, head of the Atomic Energy Organization of Iran, recently clarified in an interview with Sputnik News Agency that the Islamic Republic does not intend to enrich uranium above 60 percent.
Iraqi Foreign Minister Fawad Hussein participated in a press conference with his Iranian counterpart, Hossein Amir Abdollahian, during his official visit to Iran on Thursday evening (December 23).
He emphasized that Iraq's interests require that if we can help, Iran and the United States sit around the negotiating table, and "we demand direct negotiations between Tehran and Washington."
The Iraqi Foreign Minister added: "We have told the Americans about this issue, and today and before, we have raised this issue with our brothers in Iran. In a meeting I had with Mr. Amir Abdollahian in New York, I told him that it would be better to have a direct dialogue between Iran and the United States."
Experts believe that one of the main obstacles in the negotiations to revive the JCPOA in Vienna, the seventh round of which has just concluded, is the lack of direct dialogue between the Iranian and American delegations, as the main parties to the conflict.
Source: DW
