Vienna nuke talks’ success depends on US decision: Iran

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'More flexibility' likely in next round of Vienna nuke talks.

Tehran, (Asian independent) A top Iranian security official said that the success of the Vienna talks on the restoration of a 2015 nuclear deal depends on the US’ political determination.

Nuclear negotiations in Vienna have reached a stage where “the outcome can be announced without guesswork”, Secretary of Iran’s Supreme National Security Council Ali Shamkhani said in a tweet on Monday.

The US political decision on whether to accept the requirements conducive to the conclusion of “a credible and lasting deal” based on the principles in the 2015 nuclear deal, formally known as the Joint Comprehensive Plan of Action (JCPOA), Xinhua news agency quoted Shamkhani as saying.

Iran signed the JCPOA with world powers in July 2015.

However, former US President Donald Trump pulled Washington out of the agreement in May 2018 and reimposed unilateral sanctions on Iran, which prompted the latter to drop some of its nuclear commitments one year later and advance its halted nuclear programmes.

Since April 2021, eight rounds of talks have been held in the Austrian capital between Iran and the remaining JCPOA parties, namely Russia, China, France, the UK and Germany, to revive the landmark deal.

The US, which has been indirectly involved in the Vienna negotiations, has said it has until the end of February to resuscitate the nuclear pact, or Washington will launch “aggressive efforts” against Iran.