Iran wants 'stronger guarantees' from US to revive nuclear deal
Iran says it is reviewing the US response to the European Union draft proposal aimed at reviving the 2015 nuclear deal but wants "stronger guarantees" from Washington to clinch the deal.
Iran's foreign minister Hossein Amir-Abdollahian made the remarks on Wednesday at a joint press conference with his Russian counterpart Sergey Lavrov in Moscow following their delegation-level talks.
"We have received the American side's last text, and my colleagues are closely studying the response with the required [level of] rigor and speed," he remarked, flanked by Lavrov.
The top Iranian diplomat, however, asserted that concerning [the issue of] guarantee, Tehran needs "stronger text and stronger guarantees" to wrap up negotiations underway since April last year to revive the deal and to lift crippling sanctions on Iran.
The United States unilaterally withdrew from the landmark deal in 2018, and reinstated crippling sanctions under the so-called "maximum pressure" campaign, despite Iran's full compliance with the deal.
Since last year, the Austrian capital has hosted multiple rounds of talks between the signatories of the deal, officially known as the Joint Comprehensive Plan of Action (JCPOA), aimed at examining the prospect of the deal's revival and removal of illegal economic sanctions.
The negotiations have seen many interruptions due to Washington's obdurate refusal to respect Iran's red lines.
The European Union, which acts as the coordinator in indirect talks between Tehran and Washington, recently came up with a draft proposal to revive the deal. Tehran offered its response, which the bloc described as "reasonable."
The United States took several weeks to offer its response to Iran's comments, which is currently under review in Iran.
Amir-Abdollahian said Iran is serious about the conclusion of a lasting agreement, adding that an agreement would not be out of reach if the US acts "realistically" and the present text is reinforced.
"Our purpose is the conclusion of a good, strong, and lasting agreement," he stressed, urging the opposite side to show realism and pragmatism.
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