Khatibzadeh Responds to U.S. Warning Over Tehran’s Non-Compliance: We Won’t Wait Forever for an Agreement

Saeed Khatibzadeh, spokesman for the Islamic Republic of Iran’s Foreign Ministry, responded on Tuesday, March 1st to statements by the U.S. State Department spokesperson regarding the United States’ potential withdrawal from negotiations if Tehran shows non-compliance, calling it “bluster and bluffing” and stating that Iran is ready for an agreement but will not wait indefinitely.

Ned Price, U.S. State Department spokesman, warned Islamic Republic officials that if Tehran shows non-compliance, Washington may withdraw from negotiations.

Mr. Price added that if “Iran will not participate in good faith,” the United States and its allies and partners will pursue “alternatives.”

Meanwhile, Farsi News Agency, close to the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps, claimed without providing details that France is “obstructing” negotiations in Vienna, writing: “France could be the factor behind the failure of an agreement in Vienna.”

This comes as Ali Bagheri Kani, Iran’s senior negotiator, who traveled to Tehran last week for consultations with Islamic Republic officials, has returned to Vienna.

The Islamic Republic of Iran has explicitly stated that it seeks an end to sanctions and guarantees for that, and will not compromise on its “red lines.”

Iran’s Foreign Ministry spokesman emphasized on Monday that the Supreme National Security Council oversees the negotiations and has provided the “necessary directives” to Iran’s senior negotiator in Vienna.

On Thursday, Ali Shamkhani, secretary of Iran’s Supreme National Security Council, stated that the final phase of nuclear deal revival negotiations in Vienna would “not reach a conclusion without Western political decision-making on remaining issues, which is necessary for balancing the agreement.”

Talks to revive the JCPOA with the participation of representatives from Iran, France, Britain, Germany, Russia, China, and the European Union, as well as indirect participation of U.S. representatives in Vienna, have been continuing for the past 10 months.

The ultimate goal of these negotiations is to return to the nuclear agreement of June 2015 known as the “Joint Comprehensive Plan of Action” between Iran and world powers.

Source: Voice of America