Page 12 - MEOG Week 23 2021

MEOG POLICY MEOG

Blinken warns Iran’s breakout

time could shrink to weeks

IRAN THE US still does not know whether Iran on June 10. The US abandoned the nuclear
is ready to resume compliance with its 2015 deal, otherwise known as the JCPOA, in 2018,
nuclear deal obligations and if Tehran continues prompting Iran to begin violating its terms
to violate the pact, the “breakout time” it would about a year later as restored American sanctions
require to produce enough fissile material for a increasingly undermined its economy.
single nuclear weapon would shrink to weeks, Resuming talks on June 10 would leave only
US Secretary of State Antony Blinken said on eight days to reach an agreement for a JCPOA
June 6. revival before Iran’s June 18 presidential election.
“pemIt remains unclear whether Iran is will- As things stand, the poll is likely to see the elec-
ing and prepared to do what it needs to do come tion of a hardline candidate.
back into compliance,” Blinken told lawmakers. In the Bulletin of the Atomic Scientists on
“Meanwhile, its programme is galloping June 7, Atlantic Council non-resident fellow Sina
forward. ... The longer this goes on, the more Azodi argued that the hardliners actually want
the breakout time gets down ... it’s now down, to see a revival of the nuclear deal because of the
by public reports, to a few months at best. And big economic benefits it would bring, but want
if this continues, it will get down to a matter of to delay any agreement on the restoration of the
weeks.” JCPOA until after the election to avoid giving
The US and Iran began indirect talks, medi- rival candidates in the contest a boost.
ated by major powers, in Vienna in April to see June 7 also brought reports that the US and
if they might both find their way to restoring Europe have decided to set aside a fresh warn-
compliance with the accord under which Teh- ing from the director general of the UN’s nuclear
ran agreed to measures to keep its nuclear pro- watchdog, the International Atomic Energy
gramme entirely civilian. Agency (IAEA), that it is no longer possible to
A main objective of the nuclear deal is to say with confidence whether Iran is seeking to
make it very much harder for Iran to obtain fis- build a bomb, as they press on with attempting
sile material for a weapon. In return for compli- to revive the nuclear deal.
ance, Iran is supposed to be shielded from major Iran has always stated that it has never had
US, EU and UN sanctions. any intention of producing a nuclear bomb but
The fifth round of talks ended on June 2. Dip- its foes, particularly Israel, vehemently dispute
lomats have said a sixth might possibly begin that assertion.™

P12 www. NEWSBASE .com Week 23 09•June•2021