US: It’s Too Early to Talk About Progress in JCPOA Revival Negotiations

Ned Price, spokesperson for the US State Department, responded cautiously to optimistic remarks by Russia’s representative regarding progress in JCPOA revival talks. He said it is still too early to say how significant the limited progress that has been made actually is.

Ned Price, spokesperson for the US Department of State, in response to optimistic remarks by Russia regarding progress in Vienna negotiations and their “positive results,” stated that it is still too early to talk about progress in JCPOA revival negotiations in Vienna.

The US State Department spokesperson told reporters on Tuesday, December 28, that there may have been some limited progress in nuclear negotiations, but it is still too early to say how significant this progress has been.

Price emphasized: “We believe that the progress made is far slower than Iran’s accelerated nuclear steps.”

Ned Price added that the United States is reviewing whether Iran has returned to negotiations with a new agenda or with solutions it had previously presented.

Mikhail Ulyanov, Russia’s representative to international organizations, expressed satisfaction with the results of informal nuclear negotiations with Iran and said that the issue of lifting sanctions is also being actively discussed in an informal setting.

Ulyanov wrote on his Twitter: “During Vienna negotiations on the JCPOA, the nuclear issues working group held a useful meeting. We are witnessing undeniable progress. Lifting of sanctions is being actively discussed in informal settings.”

According to Russia’s representative, participants in this meeting, in particular, agreed to focus on the process of preparing a draft to reach an agreement as quickly as possible.

The eighth round of these negotiations began on Monday, December 27, in Vienna. The United States is participating indirectly in these negotiations.

American officials have explicitly stated that if Vienna negotiations do not reach a conclusion, stricter sanctions will be imposed against the Islamic Republic of Iran.

Israel, as Washington’s ally, has repeatedly emphasized that it is preparing itself for a military strike on Iran’s nuclear facilities.

Source: DW