Iran rules out interim deal with US in nuclear talks

Western officials are worried about Iran’s extreme demands and fear that Tehran is not taking the negotiations seriously.

By World Israel News staff

As nuclear talks are meant to resume later this week, Iran has ruled out any “halts or step-by-step agreements or temporary agreements,” an Iranian foreign ministry spokesperson said during a Monday press conference.

Spokesperson Saeed Khatibzadeh told reporters that Iran is not in a hurry and refuses to allow its “time or energy to be wasted” on other parties involved in the talks, Iranian media reported.

Tehran will only negotiate based on the two drafts it has already submitted on removing US sanctions and halting Iran’s compensatory measures. 

Khatibzadeh added that Iran’s team has been flexible, but other parties involved do not have the required “interaction or flexibility,” adding that Iran is still waiting on a response to the drafts. 

The development comes a day after Israel announced that Mossad chief David Barnea and Defense Minister Benny Gantz will fly to Washington next Sunday with the aim of convincing the US to take harsher action against Iran.

Indirect talks between Washington and Tehran broke off on Friday, and are scheduled to resume this week, but the exact timing has yet to be announced. The talks left Western officials fearing that the Islamic Republic is not taking the nuclear negotiations seriously, and Iran’s extreme demands are raising red flags. 

US Secretary of State Antony Blinken reflected the international crowd’s concerns when he said that it seems Iran is not serious about returning to the 2015 nuclear deal, “which is why we ended this round of talks in Vienna.”