Iran was reconsidering the proposal to revive the 2015 nuclear deal
IRNA, The State News Agency, on August 12, quoting a senior Iranian envoy, said, “If the EU gives assurances on Tehran’s demands, it can accept the EU proposal to revive the 2015 nuclear deal.”
“It had proposed a final text following four days of indirect talks in Vienna between the US and Iran,” said the EU on August 8.
“No more changes will be made to the text, which has been under discussion for 15 months,” said a senior EU officer. The senior EU officer awaits a final decision from Tehran within a couple of weeks.
IRNA quoted an unknown Iranian envoy as saying Tehran was reconsidering the proposal. The envoy said, “If they give Tehran an assurance on the matters of safeguards, sanctions, and guarantees, then the proposal by the EU can be acceptable.”
Iran’s demands to lift US sanctions
If the deal is revived, then no upcoming president of the US would break the deal like former president Donald Trump did in 2018 and reinstate stringent US sanctions on Iran, which the Islamic Republic has looked to for assurance.
But Joe Biden, the US President, cannot give such assurances as the deal is a political understanding instead of a legal binding treaty.
According to state TV, Tehran requested getting verifiable assurances that US sanctions would be raised under a revived deal, A Shi’ite Muslim cleric, at Friday prayers, in a speech said.
According to state TV, Kazem Seddiqi at Friday prayers said, “We request the required assurances, the raising of US sanctions, and verification, and if this is accomplished, our debating team will inform the citizens that US sanctions have been raised thanks to your resistance and strength.”
“It is set to quickly pass an agreement to revive the 2015 nuclear deal,” said Washington. They would communicate their further views and considerations to the EU, which is coordinating the talks, after discussions in Tehran, said Iranian officers.
The 2015 nuclear deal is seen to be revived in March. However, 11 months of indirect talks between Tehran and the US in Vienna were thrown into chaos, primarily over Iran’s request that Washington withdraws its elite Revolutionary Guards Corps from the US Foreign Terrorist Organizations list.
The US on August 10 blamed a Revolutionary Guards member for planning to assassinate John Bolton, a national security advisor to Trump. However, Washington did not believe the accusations should influence the nuclear talks with Tehran.
