Delay in Iran Nuclear Talks... "May Extend Until Next Government," Warning

President-elect Raeesi emphasizes "The US must lift sanctions first"

[Asia Economy Reporter Yujin Cho] Iran has pressured the United States, stating that the stalled nuclear deal (JCPOA - Joint Comprehensive Plan of Action) restoration talks will resume after the next government takes office in August.

According to local media, Ali Rabiei, spokesperson for the Iranian government, warned at a press conference on the 29th (local time), "If our demands are not accepted, negotiations can continue even after the next government takes office."

He added, "The negotiations will proceed according to the guidance of Iran's decision-making authority."

Spokesperson Rabiei said, "We have conveyed a clear position and are waiting for political decisions from the United States and other participating countries."

He also noted that although agreements have been reached on key issues such as lifting sanctions on Iran's energy, banking, and insurance sectors during the negotiations so far, final decisions are pending because no agreement has been reached with Western countries on all areas.

The Iranian delegation participating in the talks has temporarily suspended negotiations after the 6th round, citing the need to coordinate opinions with their home country. Because of this, some speculate that the negotiations could be reset to square one after the election of Raisi in August.

However, the United States emphasizes that the decision-maker for the nuclear deal mentioned by Iran is not the Iranian president but the Supreme Leader of Iran, cautioning against overinterpretation.

Iran's president-elect, Seyyed Ebrahim Raisi, will begin his four-year term in August. The conservative-leaning Raisi emphasized in his first press conference with domestic and foreign media on the 21st that "the United States must show honesty and goodwill by lifting sanctions first," and that Iran will carefully review this.

Meanwhile, tensions between the two countries are rising as the United States has carried out airstrikes against militias supported by Iran.

The U.S. military's retaliatory airstrike against pro-Iran militias is the second since President Biden took office. Earlier, in February, President Biden ordered airstrikes on targets in Syria in response to rocket attacks.

The U.S. Department of Defense stated that the airstrikes were retaliation for drone attacks by these militias on U.S. military bases and personnel in Iraq, but foreign media interpret this attack as an attempt to strengthen negotiating leverage with Iran over the nuclear deal.

The Iran nuclear deal was signed in 2015 between Iran and six countries: the five permanent members of the UN Security Council (the United States, the United Kingdom, France, Russia, China) and Germany. It limits Iran's nuclear activities in exchange for lifting sanctions against Iran.

However, after former U.S. President Donald Trump declared withdrawal from the agreement in 2018 and reinstated sanctions, Iran partially resumed its nuclear activities. Currently, the United States maintains that sanctions will be lifted if Iran complies with the nuclear deal.

This content was produced with the assistance of AI translation services.