Under the title "German Official: Agreement with Iran Was Imminent, But Tehran Fears Another Trump," the Al Arabiya website reported that a senior German official revealed to the American CNBC channel that the fragile discussions regarding the revival of the 2015 Iranian nuclear agreement were about two weeks away from a conclusion in June. However, many complex issues remained unresolved. The official explained that Tehran's greatest concern was the possibility of another Trump victory and the subsequent cancellation of the nuclear agreement, according to the official who participated in the talks.
He added, "In March, our determination and that of our American friends was to achieve this quickly, but it took longer than we expected." The official stated that up to that moment, the progress had been "very substantial." He continued, as is often the case in such negotiations, the most complicated points were left until the end and remained unsolved, but I can say that we started with a blank slate and by June we had four different drafts, nearly 1,520 pages of the agreement reached.
When asked whether the new administration of President Ebrahim Raisi had spoken to the negotiating teams, the German official stated that there had been no contact so far. He remarked, "I believe there are sufficient indicators of a real discussion within the Iranian system about how to proceed with these negotiations," downplaying concerns over Raisi completely withdrawing from the talks.
He added, "What we believe the next steps will be is that they (the Iranians) will return to Vienna as soon as the government is formed, which leads us to mid-August, and then we will meet and see what kind of negotiating positions they come with."
The German official noted that the negotiations thus far had been "very straightforward." He added, "We had a good understanding with the Iranians on how to re-enter the Joint Comprehensive Plan of Action." When asked to clarify the main sticking points, the official said that the Iranians often reiterated their fears about the U.S. withdrawing as a new administration begins. The German official explained, "They want to ensure there is no other Trump as long as they are fully compliant, and that the Americans won't simply withdraw from the agreement again."
He pointed out that another conflicting issue is the extent of sanctions relief for Tehran, as Iranian representatives called for further alleviation. The official stated, "We, along with our American friends, say that the sanctions that need to be lifted are those related to the Joint Comprehensive Plan of Action," adding that sanctions for human rights violations would remain in place.
He added, "There are other issues we need to discuss in follow-up talks that the Iranians are reluctant to commit to." The official warned, "There may come a point where there is no going back to the Joint Comprehensive Plan of Action amid Iran's continued activities in enrichment and research and development," cautioning that we have not reached that point yet, but it is a possibility that everyone should be aware of.
