Iran, the US and the European Union said on Wednesday that they would send representatives to Vienna amid what appears to be a last-ditch effort at reviving talks over Tehran's tattered 2015 nuclear deal with world powers.
The EU official leading the talks, Enrique Mora, said negotiations would focus on the most recent draft to restore the agreement, while Iran said it was dispatching nuclear negotiator Ali Bagheri Kani to the Austrian capital.
Iranian state media cited foreign ministry spokesman Nasser Kanaani as saying that Tehran was ready to reach a deal that guarantees its rights.
“Bagheri Kani will leave Tehran in a few hours … In this round of talks, which will be held as usual with the co-ordination of the European Union, ideas presented by different sides will be discussed,” Mr Kanaani said
US Special Representative for Iran Rob Malley wrote on Twitter that he was also preparing to travel to Vienna for the talks. He cautioned that US “expectations are in check” over negotiations.
The prospects for the deal's restoration have dimmed in the past few months with major sticking points remaining, including Tehran's demand that Washington provide guarantees that it will not quit the pact again and that it will lift terrorism sanctions on Iran's Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps.
The Vienna talks come after the UN nuclear watchdog warned on Tuesday that good words from Iran are not enough to satisfy international inspectors.
Rafael Grossi, Director General of the International Atomic Energy Agency, said he hoped Tehran was ready to be transparent about its nuclear programme, which was “moving ahead very, very fast”.
So far, Iran and the US have been unable to re-establish the deal signed between Tehran and world powers in 2015, in which it curbed its nuclear programme in return for economic sanctions relief.
Mr Grossi said Iran must give IAEA inspectors access “commensurate to the size” of its uranium enrichment programme if the agency is to credibly assure that it is peaceful.
“When it comes to nuclear, good words will not do it,” he said. “What you need to do is to be transparent and compliant and work with us.
“We are ready and I hope they will be as well. They have a very ambitious nuclear programme that needs to be verified in the appropriate way.
“The programme is moving ahead very, very fast and not only ahead, but sideways as well, because it's growing in ambition and in capacity.”
Meanwhile, Saudi Arabia’s new Permanent Representative to the United Nations Ambassador Dr. Abdulaziz Al Wasil said on Wednesday that Iran’s practices increase the risks of nuclear proliferation.
Mr Al Wasil was speaking at the Tenth Review Conference of the Parties to the Treaty on the Non-Proliferation of Nuclear Weapons in New York.
He said that freeing the Middle East from nuclear weapons is a collective responsibility.
“Transparency is necessary for the peaceful use of nuclear energy. Iran’s lack of transparency with the International Atomic Energy Agency violates the UN Charter,” he said in statements carried by the Arabic service of the Saudi news agency and local media.
He pledged the Kingdom’s support to the expansion of the Non-Proliferation Treaty.
Mr Al Wasil indicated that Saudi Arabia supported all efforts aimed at preventing Iran from acquiring a nuclear weapon.
Iran's nuclear sites — in pictures
Donald Trump, the US president at the time, reneged on the nuclear deal in 2018, restoring harsh sanctions to squeeze Iran's oil exports and prompting Tehran to start abandoning the agreement's nuclear limits about a year later.
On Monday, Iran's nuclear energy organisation chief said it had the technical capability to produce an atomic bomb but had no intention of doing so.
Iran is already enriching uranium to up to 60 per cent fissile purity, far above a cap of 3.67 per cent set under the 2015 deal.
Uranium enriched to 90 per cent is suitable for a nuclear bomb.
The Associated Press contributed to this report
US and Israel pledge to deny Iran nuclear weapons — video
Quick pearls of wisdom
Focus on gratitude: And do so deeply, he says. “Think of one to three things a day that you’re grateful for. It needs to be specific, too, don’t just say ‘air.’ Really think about it. If you’re grateful for, say, what your parents have done for you, that will motivate you to do more for the world.”
Know how to fight: Shetty married his wife, Radhi, three years ago (he met her in a meditation class before he went off and became a monk). He says they’ve had to learn to respect each other’s “fighting styles” – he’s a talk it-out-immediately person, while she needs space to think. “When you’re having an argument, remember, it’s not you against each other. It’s both of you against the problem. When you win, they lose. If you’re on a team you have to win together.”
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Log4j breach: December 2021; attackers exploited the Java-written code to inflitrate businesses and governments
The bio
Favourite book: Peter Rabbit. I used to read it to my three children and still read it myself. If I am feeling down it brings back good memories.
Best thing about your job: Getting to help people. My mum always told me never to pass up an opportunity to do a good deed.
Best part of life in the UAE: The weather. The constant sunshine is amazing and there is always something to do, you have so many options when it comes to how to spend your day.
Favourite holiday destination: Malaysia. I went there for my honeymoon and ended up volunteering to teach local children for a few hours each day. It is such a special place and I plan to retire there one day.
The drill
Recharge as needed, says Mat Dryden: “We try to make it a rule that every two to three months, even if it’s for four days, we get away, get some time together, recharge, refresh.” The couple take an hour a day to check into their businesses and that’s it.
Stick to the schedule, says Mike Addo: “We have an entire wall known as ‘The Lab,’ covered with colour-coded Post-it notes dedicated to our joint weekly planner, content board, marketing strategy, trends, ideas and upcoming meetings.”
Be a team, suggests Addo: “When training together, you have to trust in each other’s abilities. Otherwise working out together very quickly becomes one person training the other.”
Pull your weight, says Thuymi Do: “To do what we do, there definitely can be no lazy member of the team.”
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Most F1 world titles
7 — Michael Schumacher (1994, ’95, 2000, ’01 ’02, ’03, ’04)
7 — Lewis Hamilton (2008, ’14,’15, ’17, ’18, ’19, ’20)
5 — Juan Manuel Fangio (1951, ’54, ’55, ’56, ’57)
4 — Alain Prost (1985, ’86, ’89, ’93)
4 — Sebastian Vettel (2010, ’11, ’12, ’13)
The specs
- Engine: 3.9-litre twin-turbo V8
- Power: 640hp
- Torque: 760nm
- On sale: 2026
- Price: Not announced yet
Killing of Qassem Suleimani
WISH
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2.0
Director: S Shankar
Producer: Lyca Productions; presented by Dharma Films
Cast: Rajnikanth, Akshay Kumar, Amy Jackson, Sudhanshu Pandey
Rating: 3.5/5 stars
Killing of Qassem Suleimani
Killing of Qassem Suleimani
MATCH INFO
Manchester United 6 (McTominay 2', 3'; Fernandes 20', 70' pen; Lindelof 37'; James 65')
Leeds United 2 (Cooper 41'; Dallas 73')
Man of the match: Scott McTominay (Manchester United)
Learn more about Qasr Al Hosn
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