Iran nuclear talks resume after 5 months

Talks to revive the Iran nuclear deal have resumed in Vienna, Austria, after a 5-month hiatus. Following an approximately 5-month hiatus in the talks held in Vienna, Austria, to fully and completely revive the Iran nuclear deal, known as the Joint Comprehensive Plan of Action (JCPOA), the parties have reconvened for negotiations. Bilateral talks were held on the first day of the negotiations, which were held under the chairmanship of Enrique Mora, Under-Secretary General and Political Director of the EU External Relations Service on behalf of the High Representative of the European Union (EU) for Foreign Affairs and Security Policy. Mora met with Iranian Deputy Foreign Minister and Chief Negotiator Ali Baqeri and Ambassador Mikhail Ulyanov, Russia’s Permanent Representative to the United Nations (UN) Vienna Office. Within the scope of the bilateral talks, Russian Ambassador Ulyanov met with Baqeri. In a statement on Twitter, Ulyanov stated that he had a constructive meeting with Baqeri that discussed the ways and methods to overcome the issues that needed to be resolved regarding the final agreement. Ulyanov noted that the steps to be taken to revive the JCPOA were discussed in his meeting with Political Director Mora. While no statement was made by the EU External Relations Service, the Chinese delegation also participated in the talks. Nuclear negotiations with Iran The nuclear talks, which address the full implementation of the nuclear agreement signed with Iran in 2015 and the US’s return to the agreement, have been held intermittently in Vienna since April 2021. Washington, which unilaterally withdrew from the agreement in 2018 during the term of former US President Donald Trump, is participating in the negotiations held in Vienna with the participation of high-level representatives from Russia, China, Germany, France, the UK and Iran, through the EU. While Washington wants Tehran to return to its commitments in the agreement, Iran, as the party that has withdrawn from the nuclear agreement, first demands that the US return to the agreement, lift all sanctions and give assurances that it will not withdraw from the agreement again. The parties last met in March 2022, and EU High Representative for Foreign Affairs and Security Policy Josep Borrell announced that the talks were suspended due to “external factors.” During Borrell’s visit to Tehran on June 25, it was decided that the indirect talks between the US and Iran, mediated by the EU, would continue in Doha. It was announced that no progress was made in the talks held on June 29. EU High Representative for Foreign Affairs and Security Policy Borrell announced on July 20 that he had presented a new draft text to the parties to resolve the dispute between Iran and the US. The Tehran and Washington administrations also announced that they welcomed the new solution proposals presented by the EU.