 A round of talks to restore the Iran nuclear deal in Vienna, Austria. Photo: IRNA/VNA
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The current 9th round of negotiations is the second held in 2022 between Iran and P5+1 (the US, the UK, France, Russia, China and Germany) after January talks failed to achieve the hoped-for result. The seven rounds of talks in 2021 showed the biggest obstacle was the disagreement between the US and Iran on sanctions. But just a few days before the latest talks, the US suddenly announced it is waiving sanctions against Iran, a breakthrough step for the negotiations, which both parties have said are at a decisive moment.
Positive signals
President Joe Biden's administration on February 4 announced it will lift a number of major sanctions on Tehran. The waiver will allow foreign companies to participate in projects at nuclear power plants and reactors in Iran. This means that now Russian, Chinese, and European companies can carry out nuclear cooperation projects with Iran, provided that Iran's nuclear facilities are not used for weapons development. The US State Department said waiving sanction will accelerate the Vienna talks in the hope of restoring the nuclear agreement formally called the Joint Comprehensive Plan of Action (JCPOA).
Iran welcomed the US announcement. According to the ISNA news agency, Foreign Minister Hossein Amir Abdollahian said the sanction waiver shows US goodwill.
 Iranian Foreign Minister Hossein Amir Abdollahian. Photo: IRNA/VNA
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Analysts are optimistic about the possible outcome. EU’s foreign policy chief Josep Borrell told reporters at the conclusion of a two-day visit to Washington that reaching an agreement is “the most important problem” but he is hopeful of a breakthrough “because both sides have been showing willingness.” The US State Department on Monday said a deal is in sight. An unidentified US official said he believes the parties are "very close to a deal".
Unverified sources from Vienna said a 20-page agreement on resuming the JCPOA has been drawn up and will keep the original commitments made in 2015 with some additions to suit the new context. But both sides expressed some caution about the possibility of reaching an agreement soon.
Many obstacles remain
A US State Department spokesperson said on Monday that a deal that addresses all sides’ core concerns is in sight, but if it is not reached in the coming weeks, Iran’s ongoing nuclear advances will make it impossible for the US to return to the JCPOA.
The EU’s foreign policy chief noted that there are still major disagreements between the US and Iran and said he does not know how long the current negotiations, although in the final stage, will last.
The Iranian Foreign Minister in a statement welcomed the US’s lifting of sanctions but said that what is on paper is not enough. He asked Washington to show more obvious goodwill in practical actions.
Analysts say reviving the JCPOA seems more possible now that the US and Iran are showing goodwill. But there remain obstacles and building trust will require all parties to make even greater efforts.