The European Union (EU) and Iran have shown willingness to resume stalled nuclear talks in the coming days. Talks between Iran and the major powers–Russia, United States, China, France, United Kingdom and Germany–over Tehran’s nuclear programme have stagnated since March. A key obstacle to the discussions has been tension between US and Iranian officials, with each side blaming the other for the stalemate. The purpose of the talks is to revive the 2015 JCPOA pact, which placed limitations on Iran’s nuclear programme in exchange for sanctions relief.
In 2018, then-US President Donald Trump pulled out of the deal and reimposed crippling sanctions on the country, despite broad Iranian compliance to its terms. Since then, Iran has reigned on a number of aspects of the deal, putting it into conflict with the US. Concluded by Iran and the six powers, the JCPOA aims to guarantee the civilian nature of Tehran’s nuclear program, in exchange for a gradual lifting of sanctions that have suffocated the Iranian economy.
Iran has been accused of developing nuclear technology for atomic weapons–something it denies, insisting the technology is primarily for peaceful purposes. Head of EU diplomacy Josep Borrel, who has pushed to break the diplomatic deadlock, made the announcement with the Iranian foreign minister Hossein Amir-Abdollahian at a press conference in the Iranian capital
The JCPOA appeared close to being revived in March, following 11 months of indirect talks between Tehran and the US under President Joe Biden, with the EU acting as a go-between. But they became bogged down over Tehran’s insistence that Washington removes the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC) from the US Foreign Terrorist Organisation. The IRGC is an elite security force in Iran, which has huge political influence and controls large sections of the country’s economy.
Iranian Foreign Minister Hossein Amirabdollahian has referred to his inclusive talks with the EU representative and said that Iran is ready to resume negotiations with P4+1 in the coming days. Speaking during a joint press conference after a meeting in Tehran with EU foreign policy chief Josep Borrell, Amirabdollahian said that economic interests of the Iranian nation is of significance for the Iranian government.
The EU foreign policy chief, for his part, stressed the importance of his visit to Tehran. Borrell noted that his visit has not come to an end and there will be another meeting. He underlined that the main purpose of his visit to Tehran was to break the deadlock of a 2015 Iran nuclear deal (known as JCPOA) and to reduce the tensions.
Both sides are scheduled to resume JCPOA talks quickly within the next coming days, Borrell said. He said that he, as the JCPOA coordinator, prepared a number of proposals in March and raised a number of questions that had to be answered by Iran and the US. The talks need to be resumed and this is a decision that has to be made both in Tehran and Washington. Reaching a deal with Tehran in such a situation would be a crucial and historical accord for the entire world.
Borrell in a series of tweets announced a deal with Iran to resume nuclear talks. In meeting with Iranian Foreign Minister we agreed on resumption of negotiations between Iran and US in the coming days, facilitated by my team, to solve the last outstanding issues. Our bilateral relations have enormous potential but without a working JCPOA we cannot fully develop our relationship. Also raised urgent matters such as the highly disconcerting detention of EU citizens in Iran and asked for their release.
