Alongside the dramatic events unfolding in Ukraine, talks in Vienna are now focused on efforts to bridge the remaining gaps so that Tehran and Washington return to the nuclear deal.
The urgent visit to Tehran by the Director General of the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) on Saturday, March 5, two days ahead of the convening of the IAEA Board of Governors, was intended to allow the parties to agree on answers to the IAEA's questions on undeclared sites where uranium remains were found. Iran has tried to present a demand for the closure of the matter as one of the last three issues before agreeing on a return to the agreement. The compromise reached requires Iran to submit a written explanation to the IAEA's questions within two weeks, with a subsequent discussion on each of them. In doing so, Iran has waived its condition, and for its part the IAEA (apparently with the agreement of Washington and the Europeans) is postponing the issue to the next meeting this coming June.
Russia, one of the partners to the original nuclear deal, has tried in recent days to link the issues, as part of a demand made by Foreign Minister Lavrov for written guarantees by the United States that Russia could continue trade and economic relations with Iran as the nuclear agreement allows after the sanctions are lifted. It is unclear whether the move was coordinated with Tehran, but the US administration, as expected, has rejected this demand outright, and even in Iran there were those who saw it as an obstacle to progress on closing the final issues on the road back to the agreement.
Meanwhile, leaks from the IAEA's latest report on Iran's nuclear program show that it already has 33 kilograms of 60% enriched uranium, which is two-thirds of the amount needed for high grade enrichment for the first nuclear device. This joins about three tons of enriched uranium on different levels, including 182 kg of uranium enriched to 20% (close to the amount required for high enrichment on a military grade).
In conclusion, along with continued internal criticism in Tehran and Washington by opponents of the deal, both sides are cautiously optimistic about a conclusion soon. Each side continues to emphasize there are still a small number of issues that must be resolved, and assigns responsibility to the other party to make the necessary decisions / concessions.
Alongside the dramatic events unfolding in Ukraine, talks in Vienna are now focused on efforts to bridge the remaining gaps so that Tehran and Washington return to the nuclear deal.
The urgent visit to Tehran by the Director General of the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) on Saturday, March 5, two days ahead of the convening of the IAEA Board of Governors, was intended to allow the parties to agree on answers to the IAEA's questions on undeclared sites where uranium remains were found. Iran has tried to present a demand for the closure of the matter as one of the last three issues before agreeing on a return to the agreement. The compromise reached requires Iran to submit a written explanation to the IAEA's questions within two weeks, with a subsequent discussion on each of them. In doing so, Iran has waived its condition, and for its part the IAEA (apparently with the agreement of Washington and the Europeans) is postponing the issue to the next meeting this coming June.
Russia, one of the partners to the original nuclear deal, has tried in recent days to link the issues, as part of a demand made by Foreign Minister Lavrov for written guarantees by the United States that Russia could continue trade and economic relations with Iran as the nuclear agreement allows after the sanctions are lifted. It is unclear whether the move was coordinated with Tehran, but the US administration, as expected, has rejected this demand outright, and even in Iran there were those who saw it as an obstacle to progress on closing the final issues on the road back to the agreement.
Meanwhile, leaks from the IAEA's latest report on Iran's nuclear program show that it already has 33 kilograms of 60% enriched uranium, which is two-thirds of the amount needed for high grade enrichment for the first nuclear device. This joins about three tons of enriched uranium on different levels, including 182 kg of uranium enriched to 20% (close to the amount required for high enrichment on a military grade).
In conclusion, along with continued internal criticism in Tehran and Washington by opponents of the deal, both sides are cautiously optimistic about a conclusion soon. Each side continues to emphasize there are still a small number of issues that must be resolved, and assigns responsibility to the other party to make the necessary decisions / concessions.