Iran’s deputy foreign minister reiterated Tehran’s position on the continuation of the Vienna talks and warned that the nuclear talks would be failed if all sanctions were not lifted.
Speaking to The Independent about the talks on the Joint Comprehensive Plan of Action (JCPOA) due to resume in Vienna on Monday, Iran’s Deputy Foreign Minister for Political Affairs Ali Bagheri-Kani stressed that any progress on Vienna talks must be preceded by the scrapping of all American sanctions while reminding that there would be a guarantee that a future administration in Washington will not once again renege on the agreement as Trump had done.
Bagheri-Kani went on to criticize the Biden administration’s approach, stating that the Biden administration was repeating some of the mistakes of its predecessor and continuing with the “failed policy” of “maximum pressure” on Tehran, which has caused “political bewilderment.”
Iran’s top diplomat highlighted: “The removal of all JCPOA related sanctions such as the sanctions imposed within the framework of ‘maximum pressure campaign is the necessary condition for the success of the negotiations.
“Demanding guarantees from the other party not to exit the deal, not to impose and enforce new sanctions, and not to reinstate and reapply the previous sanctions is aimed at neutralising the possibility that political chaos in the United States could have an impact on its international behaviour,” he stated.
Iran’s top negotiator went on to emphasize: “Regrettably, the failed policy of pursuing the maximum pressure campaign, which began in the Trump administration, remains in the agenda of the Biden administration.”
“President Biden needs to remove the sanctions in order to relieve himself of what we see as political bewilderment and the pursuit of failed and inhuman policies of the Trump administration,” Bagheri Kani added.
Referring to the disloyalty of E3 states toward the 2015 nuclear deal, Bagheri Kani said: “While failing to advance talks on the nuclear issue, the Biden administration’s actions on another major foreign policy concern, retreating from Afghanistan, had damaged its credibility in the Middle East and helped Iran’s relations with countries in the region.”
“The US escape from Afghanistan demonstrated yet another instance where the United States is not a reliable partner for anyone. We are in close, constant and intense dialogue with countries of the region,” he added.
“The British government should pay its debt in full, problems regarding the payment of this debt is the UK government’s business.” Bagheri-Kani said.
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