U.S., Iran Both Say They Have 'Understanding' of How to Reach Nuclear Deal

U.S. and Iranian officials have separately said they have an understanding of how to advance their indirect talks to coordinate Washington's reentry into a 2015 nuclear agreement, but noted challenges remain as they prepare for the fourth round of discussions.

On the eve of the next round of negotiations in the Austrian capital of Vienna, a senior State Department official told reporters that U.S. officials had their positions set, both on what Washington's return to the accord would entail, and how Tehran could live up to its end of the deal.

"The United States understands what it needs to do to come back into compliance with the sanctions relief commitment that it made under the JCPOA, we understand what it will take," the official said. "We also understand what Iran needs to do in order to come back into compliance with its nuclear obligations."

The official said that the ball was now in Iran's court.

"We're committed to doing it," the official added, "and we'll have to see in the coming days and weeks whether Iran is."

From the Iranian team, Deputy Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi delivered his assessment to the press on Thursday.

"We are on a path that is a definite path," the senior Iranian diplomat said. "Fortunately, there is an understanding of the path we must take, though there are serious obstacles along the way."

Both sides expressed hope for a timely resolution to the stalemate, but declined to give a timeline for reaching a deal that would be in their respective interests.

"We have a hard job ahead of us, and we hope that we will be able to finish it in a shorter time, but the discussion of time has a secondary priority for us," Araghchi said. "The first priority is to focus on securing the interests of the Iranian people and securing the definitive positions of the Islamic Republic of Iran."

As for U.S. interests, the senior State Department official reiterated that President Joe Biden has decided a return to the deal known officially as the Joint Comprehensive Plan of Action was the best option, if Iran were to also reinstate its commitments. There has so far been "been some greater convergence on some issues, lesser convergence on others," the official said.

But the goal remains the same.

"If there are complicated cases, as I've signaled in the past, we'll have to look at those more closely," the official said. "But what we're saying is we are prepared to come back into compliance—and we will look at what it takes to come back into compliance—because that's what we deem to be in our national security interest."

The assessment comes as a reversal of that of his predecessor, former President Donald Trump, who left the accord in 2018. The exit was followed by intensive sanctions against the Islamic Republic and a sharp escalation in tensions between the two longtime foes.

Iran and the deal's other parties, which include China, the European Union, France, Germany, Russia and the United Kingdom, have remained in the JCPOA, though Tehran has suspended limits on its nuclear enrichment in response to non-compliance by Western signatories. Iran's parliament also passed a law earlier this year that would expel foreign inspectors by May 21 if U.S. sanctions are not lifted or an agreement with the International Atomic Energy Agency is not reached, putting added pressure on the Vienna talks.

Also looming in the coming months is Iran's presidential election, set to take place next month and usher in the end of President Hassan Rouhani's second and final term in August. A pool of candidates, likely those more conservative and more skeptical about dealing with the West given the events of the last four years, is expected to be announced soon.

The senior State Department official said Thursday that it was "absolutely" possible to reach an understanding before the Iranian election.

The other nations facilitating U.S.-Iran communications have also been following their remarks closely. Russian permanent representative to the United Nations Mikhail Ulyanov tweeted in response to comments made by Araghchi and U.S. officials.

"The Head of the Iranian delegation is cautious in his assessment of the current state of affairs at the Vienna talks (very similar to assessments of the US colleagues)," Ulyanov tweeted. "But both #Iran and #US refrain from pessimistic conclusions. This seems to be not a bad sign as of the moment."

Earlier on Thursday, he suggested that the next round of talks could even be the last if disagreements were smoothed out.

"The next (who knows- maybe final?) round of the Vienna talks on restoration of full implementation of the #JCPOA will start on May 7," Ulyanov wrote. "Of course, if the need arises the negotiators may decide to make a new break to seek further instructions from the capitals."