| Iran nuclear talks resumed Monday in Vienna, Austria, as the U.S. warned Tehran against further uranium enrichment, Israel forcefully lobbied against sanctions relief for Iran, and Iran announced its “willingness and seriousness” to reach a deal—but only if the U.S. lifts sanctions. Enrique Mora, deputy secretary-general of the European Union, who is chairing the talks, said that Iran “recognizes the work done in the past six rounds and the fact that we will be building on that.” But he said that Iran was “insisting on sanctions lifting” immediately, which is likely to be unacceptable to Washington. Iran’s Foreign Ministry spokesperson Saeed Khatibzadeh said Tehran is willing to get on the right track to reach an agreement “if the other side shows the same willingness.”
Iran is also insisting that the United States and its allies promise never to impose sanctions on Iran again, the country’s chief negotiator, deputy foreign minister Ali Bagheri Kani, said after the talks. According to a senior European official, Kani also said during meetings that Iran would further escalate its nuclear program if those demands were not met. But Iran did agree to resume talks today in one of three working groups established in earlier rounds, which is focused on exactly which sanctions could eventually be lifted by the United States. The other two working groups, on the nuclear issue itself and on implementation of a new deal, will not resume talks today.
Meanwhile, Israel has shared intelligence over the past two weeks with the U.S. and several European allies suggesting that Iran is taking technical steps to prepare to enrich uranium to 90% purity—the level needed to produce a nuclear weapon. The intelligence suggests the Iranian preparatory steps would allow Iran to move ahead with 90% enrichment within weeks if it chose to do so. Israel also shared an intelligence assessment that Iran’s desire for leverage in Vienna could lead Tehran to further increase attacks against U.S. forces and interests in the region via proxies in Yemen, Syria, and Iraq. Israeli Defense Secretary Benny Gantz is expected to visit Washington in the coming days to discuss the Iranian nuclear crisis with Secretary of Defense Lloyd Austin and other senior Biden administration officials. New York Times, CNN, The Hill, Washington Post, Axios |