Iranian nuclear deal agreements to be reached as early as next week, says Russian diplomat

MOSCOW – The final agreement on restoration of the Joint Comprehensive Plan of Action (JCPOA) on the Iranian nuclear program may be reached as early as next week in the event of favorable development of events, Russian Permanent Representative to International Organizations in Vienna Mikhail Ulyanov told TASS in an interview.

“In the event of favorable development of events the final agreement may be reached as early as next week,” he said when asked a respective question. “However, it is possible if all countries participating in the Vienna talks agree with the version of the text provided by EU coordinators on August 8. If amendments, objections appear it is difficult to project further developments now. We have to wait for the beginning of next week,” the diplomat said.

EU coordinators have made several amendments to the text that is on the table now, Ulyanov added.

“This is not an EU text, but the one developed by all participants of the talks that have been underway since last April. As coordinators the EU’s representatives may offer compromise options, which they did. Indeed, the US has apparently agreed, whereas Iran has not yet defined its position on the text, which is why I will not speculate on what issues Teheran may still have,” he explained.

In 2015, the five permanent members of the UN Security Council and Germany reached a nuclear deal with Iran in order to address the crisis around its nuclear program. In 2018, then-US President Donald Trump decided to pull out of the agreement, with Washington slapping its most sweeping sanctions ever on Tehran. The current occupant of the Oval Office, Joe Biden, has repeatedly indicated his support for reentering the nuclear deal.

Since last April, Russia, the UK, Germany, China, the US and France have been conducting discussions with Iran in Vienna on reviving the JCPOA in its original form.

Source: TASS

Raghda Sawas