A European Union plan to resurrect the 2015 Iran nuclear agreement “may be acceptable if assurances are provided.” According to a senior Iranian official, according to the state news agency IRNA on Friday.
Following four days of indirect discussions between US and Iranian officials in Vienna, the EU said on Monday that it had submitted a “final” draft.
A senior EU official stated that no more modifications to the text, which has been negotiated for 15 months, could be made. He stated that he anticipated the parties to reach a final conclusion within a week “just a few weeks.”
According to IRNA, an anonymous Iranian official said Tehran was examining the idea. “EU proposals may be acceptable provided they offer Iran with assurances on safeguards, sanctions, and guarantees,” the diplomat added.
The Islamic Republic has sought assurances that no future US president would breach the agreement if it were resurrected, as then-President Donald Trump did in 2018 when he reinstated punishing US sanctions on Iran.
However, because the agreement is a political understanding rather than a legally binding treaty, President Joe Biden cannot give such unequivocal commitments.
According to Iranian state TV, a Shi’ite Muslim imam stated in a sermon during Friday prayers that Tehran insisted on securing verifiable guarantees that US sanctions will be withdrawn under a resurrected deal.
Washington has stated that it is willing to negotiate an agreement fast to revive the pact based on the EU suggestions.
Following deliberations in Tehran, Iranian officials said they will send “new ideas and concerns” to the EU, which coordinates the negotiations.
In March, the 2015 agreement appeared to be on the verge of being resurrected. However, 11 months of indirect discussions in Vienna between Tehran and the Biden administration were thrown into chaos, mostly due to Iran’s demand on Washington removing its elite Revolutionary Guards Corps from the US list of Foreign Terrorist Organizations.