Iran, P4+1 continue intensive diplomatic talks in Austrian capital to revive JCPOA

Intensive diplomatic talks continue in the Austrian capital of Vienna between Iran and the P4+1 group of countries to discuss all possible ways to salvage the 2015 Iran deal by removing all sanctions imposed by the United States against Tehran.

On Sunday, Iranian chief negotiator Ali Bagheri Kani and the head of the Russian negotiating team Mikhail Ulyanov held a meeting on the revival of the US-abandoned deal, officially known as the Joint Comprehensive Plan of Action (JCPOA). Iranian Deputy Foreign Minister for Economic Affairs Mehdi Safari was also present at the meeting.

In a tweet, Ulyanov, who serves as Russia’s Permanent Representative to International Organizations in Vienna, said "very intensive consultations" continue in Vienna in the course of the JCPOA talks.

"In particular I had a productive meeting with the chief Iranian negotiator Dr. A. Bagheri Kani on the remaining outstanding issues," he tweeted.

In two other tweets, Ulyanov said he held separate meetings with the US Special Envoy for Iran Robert Malley "at the final stage of the Vienna talks on the JCPOA" and also with the heads of delegations of the three European parties to the agreement -- Britain, France and Germany -- during which they "exchange(d) views on the way ahead at the Vienna talks on the JCPOA."

Iran and the P4+1 group of countries have previously agreed that no session of the JCPOA Joint Commission will be held while both sides' negotiators will continue talks within the framework of bilateral and multilateral meetings in the Austrian capital.

A source close to the Iranian delegation in the Vienna talks says Tehran has put many offers on the table and encouraged the other side to come up with new proposals to resolve the outstanding issues.

Iran has put many offers on table, encouraged other side to do the same: Source tells Press TV

A source close to the Iranian delegation in Vienna talks says Tehran has put many new offers on the table to solve the outstanding issues.

"Putting proposals on the table is quite a normal practice in any negotiation, and negotiation in its essence is a business of exchanging proposals, counter-proposals, and offers," the source told Press TV on Saturday.

Russia: Significant progress made in course of Vienna talks

In a post on his Twitter account later on Sunday, Russia's lead negotiator to the Vienna talks confirmed that the participating delegates have succeeded in making "significant progress" in the course of the negotiations.

Ulyanov said the JCPOA participants (without Iran) and the US met this afternoon to assess the latest situation surrounding the Vienna talks. 

"All assessments were positive. Significant progress has been made in the course of negotiations," the senior Russian diplomat said.

Envoys from Iran and the five remaining signatories to the deal -- Britain, France, Russia, and China plus Germany -- have been holding negotiations in the Austrian capital for 10 months with the aim of reviving the JCPOA.

The two sides have bridged some gaps since the talks began last year, but differences remain, chiefly on the issue of US sanctions. Tehran wants all sanctions imposed by the administration of former US President Donald Trump removed and says the issue is its red line.

Trump unilaterally left the JCPOA in May 2018 and re-imposed the anti-Iran sanctions that the deal had lifted. He also placed additional sanctions on Iran under pretexts irrelevant to the nuclear case as part of his “maximum pressure” campaign.

In May 2019, following a year of strategic patience, Iran decided to roll back some of the restrictions on its nuclear energy program, resorting to its legal rights under the JCPOA, which grants a party the right to suspend its contractual commitments in case of a non-performance by the other side.

The administration of US President Joe Biden says it is willing to compensate for Trump’s mistake and rejoin the deal, but it has retained the sanctions as leverage.

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