This past weekend, European, Iranian and American negotiators flew
to Vienna to see if they could once and for all come to an agreement
over Iran's nuclear program. The Biden administration has been negotiating
to reenter a deal from which the Trump administration withdrew. Shiffrin
updates us on the talks and speaks to the chief US negotiator.
Since its first day in office. The vitamin inspiration has argued
the best way to prevent Iran from obtaining a nuclear weapon is through
diplomacy instead of through the Trump administration's strategy,
known as maximum pressure for a year and a half, European and Iranian
negotiators have met in Vienna for more than eight rounds with the
US participating in directly to try and find agreement where the
U. S and Iran would return to compliance with the 2015 nuclear deal.
The U. S would lift hundreds of sanctions. The Trump administration
reimposed when it withdrew from the deal in 2018 and Iran would roll
back its nuclear program to limit set by the original nuclear deal,
including caps on enrichment and how much material it can stockpile.
The Europeans now say there is a final text on the table and discuss
whether that could lead to a deal and joined by Rob Malley, the U.
S special envoy for Iran. Marat Rob Malley, Welcome back.
To the news hour. Let's play out some of the progress you've made
with Iran so far. Do you believe you have an agreement on the sanctions
that the US would lift in exchange for the steps that Iran would
take in order to get back its nuclear program into compliance? There's
no agreement because nothing is agreed until everything is agreed.
There's a text. There's a very clear sense about what the European
Union the coordinator thinks.
Needs to be in the text for forget there to be a mutual return to
compliance and our position has been clear. As you said from day
one. We're prepared to come back into compliance with the nuclear
deal if Iran does the same
And for us, it's very clear what that means. In terms of the sanctions
relief we need to offer and the kind of steps that Iran needs to
take to roll back its nuclear program. Iran is asking for a concession
outside the deal, and that has to do with the International Atomic
Energy Agency's investigation into nuclear material found in Iran,
which the IAEA says Iran has not provided adequate explanations for
Iran is asking for that investigation to be lifted or somehow to
be solved.
Solved is the U. S going to give any concessions when it comes to
that investigation.
No and again we've made this clear. I know there's been some reporting
to the contrary, Our position is transparent and it's clear for everyone
to to hear, which is we're not going to put any pressure on the Atomic
International Atomic Energy Agency to close these outstanding issues.
They will be closed when Iran provides the technically credible answers.
That the IAEA the International Atomic Energy Agency, has requested
of them as soon as they do that, And as soon as the agency is satisfied,
we will be satisfied, but not before. Is there any kind of political
agreement perhaps not a technical agreement, but political agreement
that could be made frankly that Iran believes was made for the last
nuclear deal in which this investigation into prior Iranian steps
could not prevent a deal that you're talking about now.
Think there's a safeguards those outstanding issues nuclear issues
that
Iran has to explain the presence of uranium particles that have not
been explained. And really what the agency is interested in is not
so much sort of a pre historical historical exploration. What they
want to know is where is that uranium today and make sure that it's
accounted for and that it's under what is called safeguards. That's
what the agency is particularly interested in. And so it needs to
hear from Iran an explanation of where where does Iranians Iranian
particles are?
And make sure that they are under under IAEA safeguards. There's
no shortcut is the US making any concession at a law at all that
would allow non Americans to do business with the Islamic Revolutionary
Guard Corps and get around essentially US sanctions. We would not
and have not and will not negotiate.
Any lowering of our standards about what European or other companies
need to do. If they want to do business with Iran, they have to respect
our sanctions. The sanctions are very well defined. The Treasury
Department's puts out very clear standards for what companies need
to do kind of due diligence they need to do and any report to the
contrary that is claiming that we will lower those standards that
we will negotiate those standards.
Or just flat out wrong on sanctions relief. How much relief would
Iran get one analysis by an organization? That, of course, opposes
you. Re entering the deal says Iran would gain access to tens of
billions of dollars of central bank assets that are currently frozen
and be able to sell tens of billions of dollars more of oil. Well
as I'm not going to give you a number because that's that would be
a highly speculative, but I can't say
There are assets that have been frozen assets money that Iran collected
at a time when the sanctions were not in place and that are that
are now in in bank accounts across the globe. They would be able
to have access to those if they come back into compliance with with
the nuclear deal, and, of course, would be able to sell oil which
are not able to do now and to get the proceeds from the sale of oil.
But again, let's remember why those sanctions were put in place.
Those sanctions were put in place to get around to agree to curb
its nuclear program and to make sure that Iran cannot acquire nuclear
weapon and we've lived the opposite. We've lived this not afford
experiments for the last several years since President Trump decided
to withdraw from the deal, we've seen Iran with an unconstrained
nuclear program and with a more aggressive regional behavior, so
that experiment has failed the constraints that are on agreed to
in Iranian nuclear deal. Original 2015 deal include
Sunsets, One of the first major sunsets are in 2023, after which
they would be allowed to manufacture advanced centrifuges. Why is
a deal worth it? Still today, even though that sense set when it
comes to manufacturing advanced centrifuges, only a year away, So
first of that's that's not precisely what happened in 2023. They
can do more research and development on some advanced centrifuges.
They cannot install them.
But let's put it this way. The main constraints, which is a constraint
that puts Iran several months away from having enough fissile material
for one bomb.
That would last until 2031.
The situation we're in today. As a result of the decision to withdraw
from the deal is Iran is only a handful of weeks away from having
enough fissile material for a bomb. So again, we have to compare
this to the reality we're living today. If we could get a deal that
would put her on back several months away from being able to have
enough facility real for bomb. The Europeans have said this is the
final deal.
Is it? What? What the European Union has said, and they're the coordinator
is that they believe that negotiations over this text have exhausted
their usefulness and they don't see the don't see that they could
be improved through continued talks were considering the text very
carefully to make sure that it lives up to the president's.
Very clear guidance that he would only sign up to deal that is consistent
with US NATIONAL security interests. The Department of Justice this
week charged a member of the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps of
Plotting to assassinate former national security advisor John Bolton
is the threat of Iranian attempts to assassinate former senior officials
for the assassination.
Of costume. Soleimani. The former IRGC codes for says is that threat
is ongoing. And do you fear it will last for a while, So I'm not
going to comment on the work that the Department of Justice has done.
I think it speaks for itself, but I would repeat what both the sector
of state and the national school divisive said, which is that this
president, as I assume any president will be relentless.
And protecting Americans, whether they are in and out of uniform
where they are current or former officials. And on this, I think
we stand united. And I think Iran has gotten the message that if
it threatens
Our citizens. We will respond. Decisively
Rally special Envoy for Iran Thank you very much.