State Department: JCPOA Negotiations Over, Iran Must Drop ‘Extraneous’ Demands
By Connor Freeman
After the latest round of indirect talks in Vienna, there is a draft deal currently on the table to revive the Joint Comprehensive Plan of Action (JCPOA). It was proposed by Josep Borrell, the European Union’s foreign policy chief. The EU claims the last step is for both sides, Washington and Tehran, to say yes or no. The Iranians dispute the idea that this proposal is finalized and say three issues remain that must be worked out. But Washington refuses additional talks.
On Monday, Iran’s Foreign Minister Hossein Amirabdollahian said there remains “three issues that if resolved, we can reach an agreement in the coming days.” He elaborated saying “we have told them that our red lines should be respected … We have shown enough flexibility … We do not want to reach a deal that after 40 days, two months or three months fails to be materialized on the ground.”
The Biden administration now says they refuse to negotiate any further. State Department spokesman Ned Price said Tehran must drop its “extraneous” demands. “The only way to achieve a mutual return to compliance with the JCPOA is for Iran to drop further unacceptable demands that go beyond the scope of the JCPOA. We have long called these demands extraneous,” Price said. The U.S. will provide its answer to Borrell privately, Price added. Al Jazeera reported Washington has accepted the draft text.
It remains somewhat unclear what “extraneous” demands Price is referring to, usually the argument is over the scope of sanctions relief and guarantees on economic benefits. A Politico report cites a senior western official saying “the Iranian answer was received by the EU on Monday evening Brussels time. The response is mostly focused on outstanding questions related to sanctions and guarantees around economic engagement. Over the last few months, Iran has continuously demanded assurance that it will be able to reap the economic benefits of a restored deal.”
Iran has indicated that one of its three red lines is an end to the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) probe into some particles of unprocessed uranium discovered at “undeclared sites.” Iran cut a deal with the UN watchdog this year and says they provided full documentation to resolve the thorny issue.
Though the U.S., the E3, and the increasingly politicized IAEA chief Rafael Grossi have said Iran was uncooperative and continually used it as a way to pressure as well as censure Iran. Yet unconfirmed reports from last week said that European diplomats put forward an offer to possibly have this investigation discontinued if Iran agrees “to address” and clarify “the IAEA’s concerns before the pact takes effect.” Iran sees ending the probe as a prerequisite for reimplementing the nuclear deal.
Previous problems arose when Biden refused to remove Iran’s elite military unit, the Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC), from the State Department’s Foreign Terrorist Organization blacklist. This sweeping sanction was imposed under Donald Trump and constitutes a significant brick in the neocon’s “sanctions wall” meant to preclude Biden from restoring U.S. compliance with the deal. Earlier this month, European diplomats told Bloomberg that Iran dropped its delisting demand, seemingly confirming earlier reports that this had occurred.
Throughout this process, Iran has been steadfastly committed to diplomacy while Washington has regularly added more sanctions, ramping up the economic war on Iran. Biden has doubled down on his support for Tel Aviv despite Israel’s relentless bombings of Tehran’s key ally Syria as well as several drone strikes and assassinations inside Iran this year.