Despite the ongoing suspension of nuclear negotiations that began last April in Vienna between Iran and Western countries (Germany, Britain, France, alongside Russia and China, with indirect participation from the U.S.), the United States confirmed that discussions will continue. U.S. Ambassador Linda Thomas-Greenfield stated in response to reporters' questions yesterday, as reported by Reuters, "We have been in contact with the Iranians in Vienna, and these discussions will continue. We want to move forward."
However, she clarified that U.S. Secretary of State Antony Blinken does not have any plans to meet with the new Iranian Foreign Minister, Hossein Amir-Abdollahian, next week at the annual gathering of world leaders at the United Nations in New York. She added, "We have not made any direct plans for bilateral meetings while the Iranian delegation is here, but that does not mean we do not see value in discussions with the Iranians, as we want to move forward on issues related to the Joint Comprehensive Plan of Action (the nuclear deal reached in 2015)."
**Signals from Tehran**
The ambassador's remarks came just hours after Iran sent multiple signals in recent days expressing its desire to resume negotiations that have been stalled since the sixth round in June, despite recent tensions that have surfaced between Tehran and the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA). Yesterday, Iranian President Ebrahim Raisi announced from Tajikistan, where he attended the Shanghai Summit, that his country seeks to resolve the nuclear issue through dialogue. However, he also stated that his country "does not want negotiations for the sake of negotiations but seeks talks that lead to resolving the issue and reaching a conclusion."
These statements come while the fate of resuming the nuclear negotiations, which began last April, remains uncertain, amid accumulating obstacles to scheduling a new date for the seventh round, which was originally supposed to take place last July (2021), despite Russian and European efforts to return to the negotiation table.
