France: Iran’s Pre-Election Situation Obstructs JCPOA Revival Talks
France’s Foreign Minister announced that “Iran’s domestic issues ahead of the presidential election” have delayed the revival of the JCPOA. He stated that a return to the JCPOA would be the beginning of extensive negotiations over Iran’s missile program and regional role.
Jean-Yves Le Drian, France’s Foreign Minister, explained on Tuesday, March 16 (Esfand 26) during his speech in the country’s Senate about the factors delaying JCPOA revival negotiations. Le Drian said there is a “tactical and technical problem” in Iran, and the country’s domestic situation ahead of the June presidential election has caused new talks on Iran’s nuclear program to be postponed and has obstructed the revival of the JCPOA.
According to France’s Foreign Minister, a return to the JCPOA would be the beginning of incorporating the issues of regional policies and Iran’s missile program into negotiations.
Earlier, some senior officials of Hassan Rouhani’s government, including Foreign Minister Mohammad Javad Zarif, had implicitly and sometimes overtly warned the White House that given the high likelihood of hardline conservatives winning the 2021 presidential election, the remaining opportunity in the twelfth government to reach an agreement should not be missed.
United States: Iran’s Elections Have No Impact on Negotiations
Contrary to statements by Jean-Yves Le Drian and Zarif, American officials explicitly stated that the presidential election has no impact on atomic negotiations with Iran.
Robert Malley, Special Representative of the U.S. State Department for Iran Affairs, emphasized in an interview with the website “Axios” published on Wednesday, Esfand 20, that Iran’s presidential election is not a factor in the Biden administration’s decisions regarding how to proceed with the negotiation process with Tehran.
Robert Malley said the U.S. government will not accelerate or slow down efforts to negotiate because of Iran’s elections, and this process will only proceed in accordance with American national interests and security.
Robert Malley emphasized that the U.S. government has made it clear to the Islamic Republic that it is prepared to cooperate in a serious diplomatic process to provide the conditions for both sides to return to the nuclear agreement and JCPOA commitments.
