Several countries have been struggling for a nuclear deal with Iran for almost two years. The aim is to find a follow-up agreement after the termination by US President Trump. Now there is a document that will be decided in the capitals of the negotiators.
Talks to restore the nuclear deal between Iran and six other countries have been declared over. The text is ready and will now be presented by EU foreign policy chief Josep Borrell in the capitals of the countries involved, said a high-ranking EU representative in Vienna. “You must now say yes or no,” said the diplomat. There is nothing more to negotiate. In his view, it is a “very good compromise for everyone involved”. After almost two years of negotiations, he expects an answer “in a few weeks, very, very few weeks”.
In a diplomatic tour de force, representatives from the United States, Iran and other countries had been trying to come to an agreement in Vienna for a few days to lift US sanctions and restrict Tehran’s nuclear program again. Those were the original goals of a 2015 pact designed to prevent Tehran from building nuclear weapons. The United States left the agreement in 2018 under then-President Donald Trump. Germany was also involved in the negotiations in Vienna.
Negotiations have been suspended for months. Talks resumed just last week. The EU coordinator first met the Russian ambassador, then the Chinese representative and finally the Iranian chief negotiator. The EU foreign policy chief Borrell had previously presented a compromise draft and called on all sides to accept it in order to “avoid a dangerous nuclear crisis”.
The reason for the months-long interruption were differences between Tehran and Washington. Both sides negotiate in Vienna only indirectly via an EU mediator. Indirect nuclear negotiations between the United States and Iran also took place in Qatar at the end of June, but ended after two days without a breakthrough.
