Iranian negotiator: Fresh sanctions will kill negotiations

A senior Iranian negotiator in talks with the six world powers (the US, Russia, France, China, Britain and Germany) warned on Wednesday that any new sanction by the signatories of the Geneva agreement will kill the deal. “No new sanctions will be accepted and any new sanctions will kill the negotiations,” Iranian Deputy Foreign Minister for European and American Affairs Seyed Abbas Araqchi said Wednesday. He underlined that the statements made by the US officials about Iran are due to their internal problems and for appeasing the US Congress and different lobbies that have recently become active against the Geneva deal. Last week, Araqchi underlined that Tehran cannot fully trust the Group 5+1 (the US, Russia, China, France and Britain plus Germany) in their pledges to remain committed to the Geneva agreement. “Since we have witnessed the lack of trust on the part of the other side in the past, we cannot be quite sure about their commitment,” Araqchi said. He, however, said that EU foreign policy chief Catherin Ashton has assured that G5+1 insists on speedy implementation of Geneva deal to clinch a final agreement with Iran. Both sides are at odds over some points, he said, adding that difference of opinion might prolong the endorsement of a final accord. Under the interim deal reached in Geneva on November 24, Iran agreed to stop progress in parts of its nuclear program for six months in return for some $7bln in relief from western sanctions. The United States also agreed to refrain from slapping new sanctions on Iran. After the United States’ recent punitive measures, Tehran officials have issued serious warnings that Washington is about to ruin the agreement. In relevant remarks earlier this month, Iranian Foreign Minister Mohammad Javad Zarif deplored Washington for breaching the Geneva agreement by blacklisting a dozen companies and individuals for evading US sanctions, and said Tehran will show a well-assessed and goal-oriented reaction to any measure adopted by the world powers in violation of the deal. “The Americans have taken improper measures in the last few days and we have given the appropriate response to them after considering all aspects of the issue,” Zarif said. He stressed that Tehran is seriously pursuing the Geneva negotiations with the Group 5+1, “and we will, of course, show proper, well-assessed, targeted and smart reaction to any improper and unconstructive measure (of the opposite side even if it doesn’t violate the Geneva agreement)”. Meantime, the foreign minister said the nuclear negotiations are moving on a rough path with many ups and downs before the attainment of the final results, "which is not something unexpected as we had foreseen this since the very first day”. On November 24, Iran and the five permanent United Nations Security Council members sealed the six-month Joint Plan of Action to lay the groundwork for the full resolution of the West’s decade-old dispute with Iran over its nuclear energy program. In exchange for Tehran’s confidence-building bid to limit certain aspects of its nuclear activities, the Sextet of world powers agreed to lift some of the existing sanctions against Tehran and continue talks with the country to settle all problems between the two sides. Iran and the six world powers had an expert meeting in Vienna, Austria, on December 9. The negotiations were scheduled to continue until December 13, but the Iranian negotiators cut short the talks and returned to Iran in protest at the US breach of the Geneva agreement by blacklisting a dozen companies and individuals for evading Washington’s sanctions. On Monday night, US Secretary of State John Kerry tried to soothe Tehran’s anger over Washington’s fresh sanctions in a phone call to his Iranian counterpart Mohammad Javad Zarif.