European Union Political Director and nuclear talks coordinator Enrique Mora will reportedly visit Iran on Tuesday. Sharing the news on Twitter, Iran’s semi-official news agency Nour News wrote that the visit is a new and constructive step in addressing the important issues remaining from the Vienna talks.
Negotiations with Iran to revive the 2015 nuclear deal have been on hold since March. The interruption of the talks was mainly caused by Iran’s insistence on removing the Guards Army of the Revolutionary Guards Union from the list of Terrorist Organizations of the USA.
Borrell: ‘We are looking for a middle ground’
In his statement to the Financial Times, EU High Representative for Foreign Relations Josep Borrell stated that Europe is looking for a “middle ground” to resolve the conflict, which has been threatening diplomatic efforts that have been going on for more than a year.
The Financial Times stated that Borrell considers removing the Revolutionary Guards from the list of terrorist organizations, but keeping other units of the organization on the list as an option. Iran’s elite security force, the Islamic Revolutionary Guard, has many branches and a vast trading empire.
Borrell said Mora had asked him to visit Tehran to discuss the matter; however, he stated that Iran was very reluctant and compared this diplomatic effort to the “last bullet”.
The Financial Times also reported that Borrell said the negotiators would not give Iran an ultimatum.
Last week, Reuters news agency wrote that Iran’s religious rulers, emboldened by the rise in oil prices since Russia’s invasion of Ukraine, were in no hurry to revive the 2015 deal that would ease sanctions targeting the country’s energy-dependent economy.
The 2015 nuclear deal, known as the Joint Comprehensive Plan of Action (JCPOA), sought to reduce sanctions in exchange for Iran curbing its nuclear program.
Former President Donald Trump withdrew the United States from the agreement in 2018, stating that he found the agreement insufficient on the grounds that it did not cover Iran’s activities in the Middle East and its missile program.