Iran Nuclear Talks: Iranian Officials Say Talks Are "Dead End"
Iranian Foreign Ministry spokesman Nasser Kanaani said the nuclear negotiations have reached a "dead end", adding that Europe has not fulfilled its obligations. Even so, Iran's foreign ministry said it is committed to finding a diplomatic solution to its nuclear dispute with the U.S. and Europe, but it is not optimistic the negotiations with Washington will succeed.
According to Iranian Officials, the Iran nuclear talks at Vienna's Coburg Palace are at a "dead end". / Picture: © Wikipedia / Buchhändler
In April 2021, Tehran and Washington began discussions in Vienna to revive the Joint Comprehensive Plan of Action (JCPOA), which the Trump administration scrapped in 2018 before reimposing sanctions on Iran.
A few months ago, negotiations stalled over various points of contention, most notably the extent of U.S. sanctions relief for Iran should the agreement be renegotiated. As both sides raise the stakes, the stalemate becomes more complicated.
The protests in Iran put a new issue on the negotiating table that only sets up new problems.
"It seems that we have reached a dead end in the negotiations of the nuclear agreement," Kanaani said, according to Middle East Monitor. A high-level commission of inquiry was recently established by the UN Human Rights Council to investigate Iranian authorities' crackdown on protesters following the death of Mahsa Amini, Kanaani said according to Middle East Monitor, "Iran will not cooperate with the political committee called the commission of inquiry."
"The hasty use of human rights mechanisms and the use of these mechanisms as a tool against independent states is unacceptable and condemnable and does not contribute to the promotion of human rights," Kanaani said according to Middle East Monitor.
"There is no doubt that Western governments, especially the U.S. government and some governments allied with it, played a role in provoking the unrest in Iran, and this information was presented to ambassadors residing in Tehran in different frameworks, and a large number of citizens from different countries were also arrested for their role in inciting the unrest," Kanaani added according to Middle East Monitor.
Iran and IAEA
In response to a resolution by the world's nuclear watchdog against Iran, Iran has increased its enrichment of uranium and use of advanced technology.
Iran was condemned by the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) and its Board of Governors for not cooperating with the agency and not adhering to the 2015 nuclear deal.
The Iranian government responded by increasing uranium enrichment at the Fordow nuclear plant to 60 percent and supplying gas to centrifuges at the Natanz nuclear plant in Isfahan.