Iran ready to start talks on lifting ‘illegal’ sanctions: Deputy FM
IAEA chief says Iran needs to strike nuclear understanding with Trump
Iran’s Deputy Foreign Minister for Legal and International Affairs Kazem Gharibabadi said Tehran is ready to start negotiations to lift “illegal and unilateral” sanctions imposed on Iran.
“We have always been ready for this, and if there is (readiness) on the other sides, we believe that the negotiations will take shape and will reach a conclusion,” Gharibabadi told reporters on the sidelines of the 75th anniversary of the adoption of the 1949 Geneva Conventions
“We believe that there are appropriate opportunities for dialogue and understanding, this is an issue that has already been discussed and everyone knows. Iran’s nuclear program is peaceful, and unilateral and illegal sanctions have not achieved their goals,” he said.
“We do not deny that sanctions in any case affect the lives of people, not only in Iran but in every country that is subject to bans, but the goal of the sanctions is to cause other changes in the countries under sanctions and so far, they have not achieved their goals.”
He underlined that the best way is to start talks to lift the sanctions and return to the right and proper path.
Regarding the continuation of negotiations with three European countries involved in the 2015 nuclear agreement, Gharibabadi said, “We agreed to continue the talks and we will set the next date through consultations.”
Iran and France, Germany and the UK have held two rounds of negotiations on Iran’s nuclear program in the recent months.
Tensions between Iran and European countries have escalated over the past two years due to European accusations of Iran’s uranium enrichment as well as delivery of missiles and drones to Russia.
Since taking office in July, the Iranian President Masoud Pezeshkian has repeatedly announced his government’s readiness to hold talks with the Western countries to resolve their disputes over Iran’s nuclear program.
Direct negotiations with US
Ahmad Bakhshayesh, an Iranian lawmaker, said Pezeshkian favors direct negotiations with the United States to put an end to long-standing differences, including Iran’s nuclear issue.
Bakhshayesh said on Sunday that Oman has traditionally mediated between the two nations, but direct talks would be more effective.
International Atomic Energy Agency Director General Rafael Mariano Grossi also said Tuesday in Davos that Iran needs to reach an understanding over its nuclear activities with the new administration of US President Donald Trump.
“There was an agreement that existed before President Trump decided that was not the path he wanted to follow,” Grossi said. “Now we need to come to terms with how we deal with this, excluding of course, a war. We don’t want more wars.”
“We are engaging with Russia, with China, with the European countries, but it’s clear for everybody that the US is indispensable,” Grossi said. “What we need is to find an understanding. This is going to be our mission in the next few weeks.”
In 2015, Iran proved the peaceful nature of its nuclear program to the world by signing the nuclear deal, known as the Joint Comprehensive Plan of Action (JCPOA), with six world powers.
However, Washington’s unilateral withdrawal in 2018 and its subsequent re-imposition of sanctions against Tehran left the future of the deal in limbo.
In 2019, Iran started to roll back the limits it had accepted under the JCPOA after the other parties, especially the European countries, failed to live up to their commitments.