US Says Iran Must Make ‘Difficult Decisions’ for Mutual Return to JCPOA

The US State Department spokesperson said on Tuesday, March 22, that it is now up to Iran to pursue a mutual return to its commitments under the nuclear agreement with world powers.

Ned Price told reporters that after nearly a year of negotiations, “it is now up to Iran to make decisions that may be difficult.”

He stated: “There are a series of difficult issues that we continue to work on.”

According to the US State Department spokesperson, “such an agreement is neither imminent nor inevitable, and therefore, for exactly that reason, for a good part of the year, we have been prepared for each of the possible scenarios.”

Mr. Price had also said on Monday that reaching an agreement to revive the JCPOA “is neither imminent nor inevitable.”

In recent weeks, Iran and the US have repeatedly passed the ball to each other over a mutual return by the two countries to their commitments under the JCPOA framework.

On Monday, Iranian Foreign Minister Hossein Amirabdollahian said: “Now it is the American side that must demonstrate its claimed good faith in practice.”

He described the remaining issues in Vienna negotiations to revive the JCPOA as “minimal” and at the same time “very important,” saying that Iran “has presented initiatives through the European Union coordinator” to the US.

With the Tuesday statements of the US State Department spokesperson, it appears Washington expects Iran to change its “maximalist” stance.

Based on published reports, the Islamic Republic is seeking the removal of the IRGC from the US terrorism list, Washington’s commitment not to withdraw from the JCPOA again, and the lifting of all US sanctions.

The US has not taken a clear position regarding the removal of the IRGC from its terrorism list and only said it is reviewing it. However, it has rejected Tehran’s other two demands. Particularly regarding preventing Washington’s withdrawal from the JCPOA, the Biden administration has stated it cannot make decisions on behalf of future US administrations.

A large portion of American Republicans are opposed to the JCPOA. Last week, 49 out of 50 Republican senators in the US Senate announced they would not support a new agreement between Iran and world powers to revive the JCPOA.

The totality of these differences has left the fate of the JCPOA uncertain.

Ned Price in his Tuesday remarks, without referring to details, said Washington has been negotiating “other options” with its partners in the Middle East and Europe for a long time.

He stressed that the commitment of Joe Biden, president of the United States, to prevent Iran from acquiring nuclear weapons is unchangeable, whether through an agreement or without one.

Iran has consistently rejected accusations of seeking to obtain nuclear weapons.

Source: Radio Farda