TEHRAN —
Iran said Monday it is time for the
US to take political decisions to resolve key remaining issues, including on
lifting sanctions, at talks aimed at reviving Tehran's nuclear deal.
اضافة اعلان
"What remains are important and key
issues that require specific political decisions," foreign ministry
spokesman Saeed Khatibzadeh said at his weekly news conference.
"Washington, in particular, must
announce its decisions on removing sanctions and the remaining issues," he
said.
"If this happens ... we will reach a
lasting, reliable agreement at a good pace."
His remarks came on the day chief
negotiators were due to return to Vienna for the talks after having travelled
home on Saturday for consultations.
Discussions continued over the weekend at
the level of experts.
The drive to salvage the 2015 nuclear deal
resumed in late November, after talks were suspended in June as Iran elected
ultraconservative President Ebrahim Raisi.
The 2015 deal — agreed by Iran, the US,
China, Russia, Britain, France, and Germany — offered Tehran sanctions relief
in exchange for curbs on its nuclear program.
But the US unilaterally withdrew in 2018
under then-president Donald Trump and re-imposed stiff economic sanctions, prompting
Tehran to begin rolling back on its commitments.
"Negotiations are going in the right
direction, we have no unresolvable impasses," Khatibzadeh said, pointing
to consensus over much of the text of a new deal.
Different parties have signaled progress at
the talks, with Tehran saying this was due to efforts by "all sides".
But Khatibzadeh criticized delays,
"especially by the US", in proposing initiatives for the lifting of
sanctions.
The US has participated only indirectly in
the talks, which seek to bring Washington back to the accord and to ensure Iran
returns to its commitments under the deal.
Western parties have insisted on the
"urgency" of reaching a deal, with US Secretary of State
Antony Blinken saying on Thursday that there are only weeks left to save the accord.
Washington is ready to look at "other
options" if negotiations fail, he said.
In response, Khatibzadeh warned: "Mr
Blinken knows better than everyone that every country has its own Plan B and
Iran's Plan B might not be in the interest of the US."
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