Tehran Denies Interim Deal to Replace JCPOA

Iran has denied reaching an interim agreement with the United States on the revival of the 2015 nuclear deal, known as the Joint Comprehensive Plan of Action. 
“No interim agreement to replace the JCPOA is on the agenda,” Iran’s mission to the United Nations declared on Thursday, according to IRNA. 
The remarks came following a report by the Middle East Eye about Iran and the US nearing a temporary deal that would swap some sanctions relief for reducing Iranian uranium enrichment activities.
The media outlet cited two sources as saying that direct talks have taken place between America’s Iran envoy, Robert Malley, and Iranian ambassador to the UN, Saeed Iravani, on US soil, marking a notable development in the diplomatic process. 
Under the terms of the claimed deal, Iran would commit to ceasing its 60% uranium enrichment activities and would continue its cooperation with the International Atomic Energy Agency as required by the JCPOA. 
In exchange, the sources said, Tehran would be allowed to export up to a million barrels of oil per day and gain access to its income and other frozen funds abroad to be exclusively used to purchase a range of essential items, including food and medication.
The White House later dismissed the report as “false and misleading.” 
“Any reports of an interim deal are false,” a spokesperson for the White House National Security Council said.
Iran’s UN mission confirmed the statement, saying: “Our comment is the same as the White House comment.”

Passing Messages  

Tehran and Washington have been engaged in indirect talks since early 2021 to restore the landmark deal that had offered sanctions relief to Tehran in return for curbs on its nuclear activity. 
The JCPOA has been out of shape since the US pulled out in 2018 and reimposed sweeping sanctions that prompted Iran to react by scaling down its commitments. 
Negotiations in Vienna, Austria, to restore the deal have been stalled over final differences. 
Iranian officials say the exchange of messages through intermediaries is still underway, but have so far denied any direct talks with the American side. 
A US State Department spokesperson declined to comment on any such talks, saying only that it had ways to pass messages to Iran but would not detail their content or how they were delivered.
The European Union, as coordinator of the JCPOA and revival talks, also said there has been no new development regarding the nuclear deal. 
Speaking at a press conference on Friday, EU spokesman Peter Stano said the bloc could not comment on speculations. 
“The EU High Representative [Josep Borrell] is in charge of coordinating the JCPOA and related negotiations, not analysis of what is said or written in the media,” he said. 
Stano added that any new development depends on all sides’ ability to reach an agreement on the document proposed months ago. 
He referred to the EU’s final proposal put forward by Borrell in August, which was initially welcomed by Iran and the US, which, however, could not agree on the details. 
Officials in Tehran have been expressing readiness for the past months to resume talks on the basis of the EU-proposed text, but with observance of the Islamic Republic’s red lines. 
American authorities, however, say the nuclear deal is no longer on top of their agenda, and they have shifted focus toward other issues. 
Iran’s permanent representative to the UN office in Vienna recently called this an “irresponsible attitude,” expressing concern that some parties have turned a blind eye to this approach and are even aligning with it.
“The measure shows that miscalculations and minor political considerations are dominating the revival of an agreement that the international community has invested for years to achieve,” Mohsen Naziri Asl said.