SULAIMANI (ESTA) — The United States has to make a “political decision” regarding lifting sanctions on Iran as Tehran’s demand for their full removal to revive a 2015 nuclear deal with world powers was non-negotiable, the Iranian foreign ministry said on Monday.
“The issue of removal of sanctions and Iran benefiting from it is Iran’s red line in the talks,” Iranian foreign ministry spokesperson Saeed Khatibzadeh told a weekly a news conference, according to Reuters.
“If the U.S. returns to Vienna with a political decision and a specific agenda … to remove the sanctions, then surely it will be possible to reach a deal quickly.”
After eight rounds of indirect talks between Iran and the United States since April, differences remain about the speed and scope of lifting sanctions on Tehran, including demand for a U.S. guarantee of no further punitive steps.
The talks paused on January 28 as top negotiators returned to their respective capitals for consultations.
U.S. Special Envoy for Iran Robert Malley said on Sunday that he would soon return to Vienna, insisting the pact could still be revived, Reuters reported.
Iran’s lead nuclear negotiator Ali Bagheri Kani would return to Vienna on Tuesday, Khatibzadeh said.
Iran insists on the immediate removal of all Trump-era sanctions in a verifiable process. Washington has said it would remove curbs inconsistent with the 2015 pact if Iran resumed compliance with the deal, implying it would leave in place others such as those imposed under terrorism or human rights measures.
