Page 10 - MEOG Week 10 2022

MEOG POLICY MEOG

Iran criticises Russian

demands in nuclear talks

IRAN LAST-MINUTE moves by Russia in the nuclear invasion of Ukraine “have nothing to do with the
deal talks are under fire as amounting to Moscow Iran nuclear deal.”
trying to take the accord hostage as part of its They “just are not in any way linked together,
strategy to fight sanctions imposed in response so I think that’s irrelevant,” Blinken told CBS.
to its invasion of Ukraine. Iran, though an ally of Russia that has
Russia has lodged an unexpected demand described the Ukraine war as resulting from
for written guarantees that its economic trade Nato provocations, seems none too pleased by
with Iran will be exempted from US sanctions the Russian intervention.
imposed on Russia since the invasion. “Russians had put this demand on the table
The move threatens to derail the Vienna talks [at the Vienna talks] since two days ago. There is
aimed at finding a path to relaunching the 2015 an understanding that by changing its position
nuclear deal, or JCPOA, that is meant to verifia- in Vienna talks Russia wants to secure its inter-
bly curb Iran’s nuclear development programme ests in other places. This move is not constructive
in return for the lifting of heavy sanctions on for Vienna nuclear talks,” an Iranian official in
Tehran. Prior to the surprise demand from Rus- Tehran told Reuters on March 5.
sia, there was growing optimism that an agree- Russia might also be concerned about how
ment to restart the JCPOA was just days away. a revived JCPOA would release substantial
Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov amounts of previously sanctioned Iranian oil
at the weekend referred to the “avalanche of onto world markets, lowering the steep oil price
aggressive sanctions [on Russia] that the west - a prized benefit for Moscow amid the heavy
has started spewing out” in response to events economic fallout from the invasion - and possi-
in Ukraine, adding: “This meant Moscow had to bly eating up some Russian market share.
ask the US for guarantees first, requiring a clear Iran sits on the world’s fourth largest oil
answer that the new sanctions will not affect its reserves and produces 2mn barrels of oil per day.
rights under the nuclear deal. The parties to the JCPOA are Iran, the E3
“We requested that our US colleagues … give (France, Germany and the UK), Russia and
us written guarantees at the minimum level of China. The US unilaterally left the deal in May
the secretary of state that the current [sanctions] 2018 but wants back in if terms can be agreed
process launched by the US will not in any way with Iran.
harm our right to free, fully fledged trade and Some of those terms involve Iran and the
economic and investment cooperation and mil- UN’s International Atomic Energy Agency
itary-technical cooperation with Iran.” (IAEA) securing a deal on a future inspection
In an indication of how sanctions are set to regime for Iran’s nuclear programme, taking into
increasingly undermine economic relations account past, present and future work.
between Iran and Russia, Aeroflot flights from IAEA head Rafael Grossi visited Tehran at the
Moscow to Iran were on March 6 suspended weekend and the indications from his talks with
until April. Iranian officials were that enough agreement
US secretary of state, Antony Blinken, was found to allow for final arrangements to be
described Russia’s JCPOA demands as “irrel- struck by June, the likely date for the JCPOA to
evant”, saying that sanctions imposed after the once more take effect. ™

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