Republicans Urge US Administration to stop secret talks with Tehran

A group of Republican members of the US Congress called on the Joe Biden administration to suspend secret talks with Iran and to provide the American people with clarifications on the issues at stake in these negotiations.

A letter from a group of Republican members of the House Foreign Affairs and Armed Services Committees to the Biden administration said: “We urge you to testify immediately before the Senate Foreign Relations Committee on negotiations with Iran before an agreement is reached in Vienna or talks fail”, Iran International reported.

The letter asked the Biden government to explain what alternatives it had to the nuclear deal and how it intended to deal with a wide range of threats posed by Iran, including nuclear programs, drones, and Tehran’s detention of U.S. citizens. “The secrecy of the Vienna negotiations and Iran’s demand for billions of dollars in waivers for terrorist activities in the region is unacceptable, and has created the impression that the Biden administration intends to enter into a weaker deal than the 2015 deal”, the Republican congressmen noted.

In connection with Iran’s nuclear threats, IAEA Director-General Rafael Grossi said the UN body was still seeking to clarify Tehran’s answers to questions about the discovery of enriched uranium particles at three Iranian sites.

In an interview with the Associated Press yesterday, Grossi referred to Iran’s removal of its uranium enrichment capability, saying it uses advanced centrifuges, and transfers them to places where it feels more protected.

Grossi visited Tehran last March and agreed with Iranian authorities that the latter would submit their responses to the IAEA by March 20.

But the head of Iran’s Atomic Energy Organization, Mohammad Eslami, claimed that those answers were sent to the agency in due course.