Iran not going to give any more concessions to US: Marandi

By Al Mayadeen English
Source: Al Mayadeen Net
4 May 2023 17:05

In an interview for Al Mayadeen, the Iranian delegation's negotiating advisor says the US still does not have the political will to sign the nuclear deal.

The Iranian delegation's negotiating advisor, Sayyed Mohammad Marandi

An advisor to the Iranian negotiating delegation, Seyed Mohammad Marandi, revealed on Thursday that the United States is sending messages to Iran and it is clear that the Americans want the nuclear deal, also known as the Joint Comprehensive Plan of Action (JCPOA).

In an interview for Al Mayadeen, Marandi made clear that Iran still is open to a nuclear deal and the text that was negotiated last year is ready.

"Even the Europeans have said that the text is acceptable to them and reasonable," he pointed out, explaining that the Europeans need a deal very much because of the current situation in Europe, the war in Ukraine, and the general deteriorating economic situation.

Marandi said that the problem with the deal lies in Washington, noting that the text is ready, but the US still does not have the political will to sign the deal.

According to the Iranian diplomat, Washington's stance has more to do with internal US politics, stressing that Iran is not going to give any more concessions to the Americans.

The #Iranian nuclear negotiating team's international media advisor during the Vienna talks, Seyyed Mohammad Marandi, to #AlMayadeen: It is clear that the #Americans want the nuclear deal, but it has more to do with internal US politics.@s_m_marandi pic.twitter.com/y8pG6WSiiB
— Al Mayadeen English (@MayadeenEnglish) May 4, 2023

"If the Americans refrain from making the right decision, then we will continue to have this current state of affairs," he said.

Marandi explained that US President Joe Biden "is afraid that if he signs the deal, his opponents will say that he's weak and that he's given too many concessions to Iran."

The #Iranian nuclear negotiating team's international media advisor during the Vienna talks, Seyyed Mohammad Marandi, to #AlMayadeen: #Washington still does not have the political will to sign the nuclear agreement. The main reason is because #Biden is afraid that if he signs the… pic.twitter.com/LUFYPtlKaK
— Al Mayadeen English (@MayadeenEnglish) May 4, 2023

"If the United States does decide to make the right decision, then the agreement can be signed within a day or two," he said.

Elsewhere, Marandi said that Iran sees a general shift across the global south away from the United States, adding that countries across the world are eager on doing business with Iran and there's an eagerness to use alternative means for business beyond the US dollar.

"This provides a huge opportunity for #Iran."
The #Iranian nuclear negotiating team's international media advisor during the Vienna talks, Seyyed Mohammad Marandi, talks to #AlMayadeen about a new global alliance that is shifting away from the West.@s_m_marandi pic.twitter.com/Yp0WdkQrPL
— Al Mayadeen English (@MayadeenEnglish) May 4, 2023

In early March, Iranian Foreign Minister Hossein Amir-Abdollahian blamed Washington for the stalemate in talks aimed at reviving the 2015 Iran nuclear deal, indicating that the current situation is the result of Washington's policies and miscalculations.

Amir-Abdollahian said that the few remaining problems in the talks to resurrect the agreement could be quickly resolved.

"Without any preconditions and through goodwill and determination of all parties and within the framework of the negotiations held until now, the final steps of the talks can be taken," the top Iranian diplomat said.

He stressed that the US must have "the will and strength to conclude the lengthy talks," emphasizing that the Islamic Republic is willing to continue talks until an agreement is reached.

Amir-Abdollahian urged the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) to abandon its political strategy in order to reach a technical solution.

The Iranian Foreign Minister also reiterated that Iran's nuclear program is peaceful and will remain as such, emphasizing that Iran will remain fully committed to its obligations under its comprehensive safeguards agreement as confirmed up till now.

Last January, Amir-Abdollahian said that Western parties have no choice to mend relations with Iran except by returning to the 2015 nuclear agreement.

Talks to resume the JCPOA with Iran began in December 2021. Their main goal is to restore the deal and lift the sanctions previously imposed on Tehran by the United States after Washington's withdrawal from the JCPOA in 2018.

However, progress on the deal was frozen by September 2022 amid a series of mass protests in Iran, for which Tehran blamed the US and other Western countries.