Jerusalem Post: Agreement on JCPOA Revival Likely to be Postponed Until After US Congressional Elections
The Jerusalem Post reported, citing a European diplomatic source, that it is unlikely Iran and the United States will return to a nuclear agreement before the November congressional elections in the United States, while the International Atomic Energy Agency has reported further developments in the nuclear program of the Islamic Republic.
Iran’s latest response to the European Union’s “final” text for resuming the JCPOA has reduced hopes for reaching an agreement within days, with Josep Borrell, the EU’s foreign policy chief, saying that “recent interactions between Iran and the United States indicate that their positions have diverged further.”
According to the Jerusalem Post citing the diplomatic source, if an agreement is not reached within the coming days, it will be too late to wrap up negotiations quickly.
US law requires Congress to have a thirty-day period to review any agreement that results in lifting sanctions on Iran. This means a potential agreement that is unpopular would need to be put on the agenda in mid-October, a short time before the November 8 elections.
European and Israeli sources say that US President Joe Biden would likely avoid such a scenario.
Meanwhile, Iran continues to expand its nuclear program, with a new report from the International Atomic Energy Agency saying that Iran’s reserves of uranium enriched to 60 percent have increased to a level that, if further enriched, would be sufficient to produce an atomic bomb.
According to the international body, Iran has increased its 60 percent enriched uranium reserves from 12.5 kilograms at the end of May, three months ago, to 55.6 kilograms, and its low-enriched uranium reserves are now 19 times higher than the limit permitted under the nuclear agreement of June 2015.
Therefore, a delay of two to three months in negotiations could also jeopardize any potential agreement.
Under these circumstances, the US State Department spokesperson emphasized on Wednesday that Washington continues to seek to revive a nuclear agreement with Iran through negotiations. Vedant Patel also said that “Iran’s response has not put us in a position where we can finalize the agreement.”
He stated: “We continue to pursue this agreement because we believe that a mutual return to the JCPOA is not only in the interest of this country’s national security, but is also an important step to curb Iran’s nuclear program.”
Also, one of the spokespersons for the US National Security Council said negotiations will continue.
Source: Radio Farda
