Priorities of New Round of Vienna Talks Outlined

The eighth round of talks on the revival of the 2015 nuclear deal will focus on sanctions lifting, methods of their verification and guarantees of non-repetition of violations, according Iran’s top negotiator. 
Ali Baqeri said participating countries agreed to focus on these topics in the latest meeting of the deal’s Joint Commission on Monday, ISNA reported.
“It was agreed that as of tomorrow morning, discussions begin on the removal of sanctions, as well as Iran’s proposals on verification and guarantees,” he said following the commission meeting, adding that issues related to financial and banking sanctions will later be discussed by joint working groups of Iran and the five remaining parties. 
Indirect negotiations began in April in the Austrian capital Vienna to work out how the United States and Iran can return to their commitments under the landmark deal, known as the Joint Comprehensive Plan of Action, which lifted international sanctions on Tehran in return for curbs on its nuclear program. 
Iran has exceeded the nuclear limits of the JCPOA in response to the US unilateral exit and reimposition of sweeping sanctions since 2018. 

It now demands a verifiable removal of all sanctions at once before it reverses its countermeasures, while western parties say nuclear and sanctions steps must be balanced.
“First, the party which has violated the agreement, that is the US, must lift sanctions and Iran verifies their removal, then implements nuclear measures within the framework of the JCPOA,” Baqeri said.
Negotiating parties have accepted the principle of verification, but methods and criteria will be discussed in this round of Vienna talks, according to the diplomat. 
“It is also Iran’s legitimate demand to receive assurances that the US would not violate the deal and impose new sanctions on Iran in contravention of the agreement again,” he said. 
Baqeri stressed that the key to the progress of talks is reaching an agreement on the effective and practical removal of sanctions.  

Sense of Urgency

European Union envoy Enrique Mora, who coordinates the talks, also said positive results could be obtained if all parties work hard in the days and weeks ahead.
“It’s going to be very difficult, it’s going to be very hard. Difficult political decisions have to be taken both in Tehran and in Washington,” he told a news conference shortly after the Monday meeting, noting that Iran’s nuclear restrictions would also be discussed alongside the lifting of sanctions. 
The EU diplomat said he decided to reconvene the talks during many officials’ holidays between Christmas and the New Year so as not to lose time, but he added that talks would stop for three days as of Friday “because the facilities will not be available,” referring to the luxury hotel hosting most meetings.    
“There is a sense of urgency in all delegations that this negotiation has to be finished in a relatively reasonable period of time. Again, I wouldn’t put limits but we are talking about weeks, not about months,” he said.
Following the seventh round, which was held under a new and more conservative Iranian government, European parties expressed dismay about Tehran’s new demands, saying precious time was being lost and they are “rapidly reaching the end of the road for this negotiation.”
The US also said talks were not going well and Washington could soon resort to other options to contain Iran’s nuclear advancement. 
US National Security Adviser Jake Sullivan said recently that Washington and its partners are discussing timeframes for diplomacy behind closed doors, putting the timeline within weeks.
Iran, however, said it would not yield to deadlines and would negotiate for as long as needed to uphold the rights of the nation. 
“The more serious the other parties are about the lifting of sanctions, as well as accepting Iran’s proposed mechanisms for verification and guarantees, the shorter time it would take to reach an agreement,” Baqeri said.