Iran’s Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi said on Monday in response to an exclusive Jerusalem Post report that said that Tehran was deliberately stalling nuclear negotiations to avoid sanctions, that this allegation was incorrect.
“We have never sought to waste time in negotiations with the United States,” Araghchi said, adding, “The time and place for the next round of negotiations with the US have not yet been determined.”
He also said that Iran will not accept temporarily suspending uranium enrichment to secure a nuclear deal with America.
According to the report in the Post to which Araghchi was responding, senior officials from the EU three – the United Kingdom, Germany, and France – warned the Trump administration that Iran is deliberately stalling negotiations regarding a new nuclear agreement to hinder the ability to impose sanctions on it.
The report cited several sources that were familiar with the matter.
Under the 2015 Joint Comprehensive Plan of Action nuclear agreement, member states have the authority to impose broad United Nations Security Council sanctions on Iran through a mechanism known as “the snapback” if Tehran commits major violations concerning its nuclear commitments.
This option will no longer be available after October, when the terms end. The European signatories have made it clear to Iran that if a new and “meaningful” nuclear deal is not reached by August, they will trigger this mechanism, which would result in extensive sanctions on Iran.
“The Europeans told the US that there must be a clear timeline for the negotiations. Otherwise, the Iranians will deliberately stall to create a US-Europe confrontation in an effort to block the use of the sanctions mechanism,” several sources told the Post.
On Sunday, Araghchi warned that “if the Europeans activate ‘the snapback’ mechanism established under the nuclear deal, Iran will forcefully respond.”
The disagreement lies in uranium enrichment
The core disagreement between the sides revolves around uranium enrichment. While the Trump administration has made it clear that it will not allow Iran to enrich uranium under a new agreement, Iran insists that it has the right to enrich uranium for its civilian nuclear energy program.
A senior US official told the Post after Friday’s talks in Oman between US President Donald Trump’s Special Envoy to the Middle East, Steve Witkoff, and Araghchi that some progress had been made, but there was still work to be done.
“The talks were constructive, and both sides agreed to meet again soon,” that official said.