Iran nuclear deal: Iran says Vienna nuclear talks to restart around joint document
Iranian Foreign Minister Hossein Amir Abdollahian revealed on Monday that nuclear negotiations between his country and international powers in the Austrian capital of Vienna start today on a new joint document.
He added in a press conference that “verifying the procedures for lifting the ban related to the nuclear agreement and ensuring that Washington does not withdraw from the agreement are the main topics in the negotiations”, according to the Iranian IRNA news agency.
“The new round of Vienna negotiations today will focus on this new joint document”, the Iranian minister said, adding that his country had left the June 2020 document aside.
He said: “It is necessary for us to reach a point where Iranian oil can be easily sold without restrictions, in addition to the transfer of foreign currency oil money to Iranian bank accounts”.
Asked about the Iran-Saudi talks, Abdollahian said: “The date for the new round of Iran-Saudi talks has not yet been set”.
The EU-sponsored negotiations are aimed at Washington’s return to the agreement that the administration of former President Donald Trump withdrew from in May 2018, reimposing heavy sanctions on Iran to make it comply with its international commitments regarding the nuclear program.
Tehran insists on a complete lifting of U.S. sanctions before returning to its nuclear commitments that it abandoned in past years, after Washington withdrew from the agreement reached during a meeting in Vienna, Austria on July 14, 2015.
As part of its policy of maneuvering, Iran earlier this month accused Western parties to its 2015 nuclear deal of “playing the blame game”, a day after European diplomats said that the deal would soon be pointless without progress.
The United States and Israel had threatened to take decisive measures to confront the Iranian nuclear program in what was understood to be a threat to use military force.
“Iran’s rapidly evolving nuclear program poses a serious threat to the Middle East and international peace”, the White House said in a statement last week after high-level US-Israeli talks in Jerusalem.
Israel has consistently hinted that if it believes diplomacy has reached an impasse, it may resort to pre-emptive strikes to deprive its archenemy of the means to build a nuclear bomb, but the Iranian Revolutionary Guard, in turn, reacts by issuing threats.
Israel opposes the Vienna talks aimed at reviving the agreement negotiated between Tehran and the major powers that allowed for the lifting of many of the sanctions imposed on Tehran in exchange for limiting its nuclear activities and ensuring the peaceful nature of its program.
