Reviving the 2015 Iran Nuclear Deal: there will be 7th round of talks

 

JCPOA talks in Vienna

According to the Iranian Deputy Foreign Minister, Abbas Araghchi, all Joint Comprehensive Plan of Action (JCPOA) agreement documents were almost ready. He said it on Sunday after the end of the sixth round of talks.

He, however, added, “but it requires decisions that mainly have to be made by the negotiating sides in Vienna,” in the same breath.

The Iranians were pretty optimistic than ever before about the possibility of striking a deal during the last round of talks, the sixth, since the new US administration took the reins of power.

Mohammad Javad Zarif, the outgoing Iranian foreign minister, for instance, was in an upbeat mood in the aftermath of the presidential elections about the success at the discussions in Vienna.

Judging by the moods of both sides and reading between the lines of their communique, it’s clear that signatories have begun exercising flexibility not to let the deal collapse.

When the head of the Iranian delegation says that the ‘document’ is almost ready, on the way back to Tehran, Iranian capital, he is seeking the approval of both the newly elected president and of course, the Supreme Leader with whom the final say in any matter lies.

Although, the core sanctions that hurt the Iranian economy still remain, the US has already removed some sanctions against some Iranian individuals; in addition,  the US Treasury Department recently issued guidance easing the way for delivery of products such as face masks, ventilators, and vaccines to combat the coronavirus pandemic to heavily sanctioned countries like Iran, Venezuela, and Syria.

The Iranian deputy foreign minister did not say when exactly the next round of talks would resume; nor did he say this time whether that would be the final!

The continuation of talks, however, shows that all those involved in the discussions are determined to strike a deal; the main stumbling block has been the concerns of what Iran describes as the ‘West Asian regimes’.

The crude oil markets, meanwhile, are watching the latest development closely; they, perhaps, miscalculated the impact of the newly elected Iranian president on the outcome at the discussions in Vienna.

Iranian media says that Ebrahim Raisi, the newly elected president of Iran, is a pragmatist despite his ultra conservative credentials. He has already promised to create jobs for the youth as one of his top priorities; a pragmatist cannot afford to let the talks fail, as the outcome is directly correlated to the revival of Iranian battered economy.

His response to the ‘document’ that the deputy foreign minister referred to, will be the first indication about the direction that he is prepared to take the new Iranian administration in the choppy waters of international diplomacy.

 

 

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