MESOP MIDEAST WATCH : Iran to Rejoin Nuclear Negotiating Table

After a five-month hiatus in negotiations on reviving the 2015 nuclear deal, Iranian and European Union envoys confirmed that talks will resume (Bloomberg) in Vienna on November 29. The pause came after the election of hard-line Iranian President Ebrahim Raisi.

Ahead of the talks, Iran has called for (Al-Monitor) the United States to guarantee it will not pull out of a deal, like it did during the Donald Trump administration. Washington has said such an assurance is impossible. Yesterday, U.S. State Department Spokesperson Ned Price said Washington will return to the talks in good faith (Reuters).
Analysis
“This is as late as Iranians could push it and still fulfill their pledge to rejoin talks ‘by end of November.’ When talks broke in June for Iran’s election, all parties expected to reconvene in July to finalize a near-complete deal. New Iran team has yet to show serious intent,” the Quincy Institute for Responsible Statecraft’s Joseph Cirincione tweets.

“Under the new president, Iran has developed a new nuclear posture that revolves around two principles: enhancing its capability to swiftly retaliate against the United States in case it reneges on its agreements and delinking Iran’s economic fortunes from the [2015 nuclear deal] by building a self-reliant and Asia-focused economy,” Texas A&M University’s Mohammad Ayatollahi Tabaar writes for Foreign Affairs.