Iran foreign minister says JCPOA revival talks at final stages

Iran says talks to revive the 2015 nuclear deal and remove sanctions against Tehran are at the "final stages" but the United States needs to adopt a realistic approach.

In a meeting with President of Zanzibar Hussein Mwinyi on Friday, Iranian Foreign Minister Hossein Amir-Abdollahian said the outstanding issues in talks to revive the deal, known as the Joint Comprehensive Plan of Action (JCPOA), can be resolved if the US acts realistically.

Then US president Donald Trump abandoned the agreement in May 2018 and reinstated unilateral sanctions that the agreement had lifted.

The talks to salvage the agreement kicked off in the Austrian capital of Vienna in April last year, months after Joe Biden succeeded Trump, with the intention of examining Washington's seriousness in rejoining the deal and removing its anti-Iran sanctions.

Despite notable progress, the US indecisiveness and procrastination caused multiple interruptions in the marathon talks.

Iran’s President Ebrahim Raeisi said on Sunday that his administration would not give up on the nation’s rights in any negotiations, in a clear allusion to the ongoing talks on the JCPOA revival.

He said the Iranian administration “will not tie people’s livelihood to any external factor and will persevere in its effort to solve the problems facing the country and people.”

002