Iran May Renew Talks On Nuclear Deal If No Preconditions Set - Foreign Minister

Tehran is ready to renew talks on the revival of the Joint Comprehensive Plan of Action (JCPOA), also known as the Iranian nuclear deal, but the negotiations must be based on realistic approach without any preliminary conditions, Iranian Foreign Minister Hossein Amir-Abdollahian said on Thursday

MOSCOW (UrduPoint News / Sputnik - 19th January, 2023) Tehran is ready to renew talks on the revival of the Joint Comprehensive Plan of Action (JCPOA), also known as the Iranian nuclear deal, but the negotiations must be based on realistic approach without any preliminary conditions, Iranian Foreign Minister Hossein Amir-Abdollahian said on Thursday.

He told Turkish broadcaster TRT World that Iran is ready to take necessary steps to renew the dialogue with the United States if there is no preliminary conditions, adding that the United States has been communicating its intention to return to the deal through diplomatic channels.

The minister also said that one of the main reasons for the suspension of negotiations was the recent unrest in Iran caused by reports of the death of a young woman in police custody. According to Amir-Abdollahian, when the plan of Western countries to destabilize the situation and change the regime in Iran failed, they decided to resume contacting Tehran to restore negotiations on the nuclear deal.

The JCPOA was negotiated between Iran and the five permanent members of the United Nations Security Council as well as Germany and the European Union in July 2015. In 2018, the US unilaterally withdrew from the JCPOA, saying that Iran had violated the deal by developing nuclear weapons in secret. In response, Iran suspended parts of its own obligations under the deal, demanding the US lift sanctions.

In December 2021, the sides achieved an agreement on two segments of the deal during talks in Vienna, however the US said that there was no significant progress and urged Tehran to treat the issue more seriously. In late August 2022, Iran sent the EU its response to the draft agreement on the restoration of the nuclear deal, expressing its concerns over remaining issues. The EU, in turn, called Iran's response constructive and said it would be consulting with the United States on further steps. Iran received the US proposal a couple of days later.

In September 2022, a wave of protests against the current government of Iran broke out throughout the country. Riots were ignited by the reports of the death of 22-year-old Mahsa Amini, who had been arrested by the controversial morality police for wearing a hijab improperly. Social media users speculated she had been beaten to death by police officers. Government officials have denied the allegation, stating that Amini suffered a heart attack.

The Iranian authorities accuse the US and other Western countries of supporting the riots and calling for the overthrow of the government. Rioters systematically attack the state security forces, including the IRGC, according to Tehran.