Brushing aside political obstacles and applying creative diplomacy, Iran and six world powers appear to be closing in on a historic agreement constraining Iran’s nuclear program and lifting economic sanctions, writes Gareth Porter.
By Gareth Porter
As the U.S. and Iranian negotiators move toward completion of a historic deal in Vienna, the lifting of sanctions against Iran — which is the most difficult outstanding issue in the talks — is on its way to being resolved, Western and Iranian sources close to the nuclear negotiations told the Middle East Eye.
With talks being extended until July 10 and Iranian sources suggesting that a deal could be penned as early as the evening of July 9, it appears that the United States and Iran have agreed on most of the provisions in the agreement governing the lifting of unilateral and UN Security Council sanctions.
Secretary of State John Kerry and other negotiators from the P5+1 at a meeting in Austria, on July 6, 2015, regarding the Iran nuclear talks. (State Department photo)
The one sanctions issue that has remained as a stumbling block in the past few days involves the text of the UN Security Council resolution that both sides have agreed will replace a series of resolutions passed between 2006 and 2010.
Until now, the P5+1 (the five permanent members of the UN Security Council plus Germany) have insisted that the text of the new resolution include a continuation of the conventional arms embargo that was imposed by a 2007 Security Council resolution. But Iran has been objecting strenuously.
An Iranian official, who could not be identified under the rules of his briefing to the press on Monday, revealed the Iranian negotiation position on the issue. The arms embargo should not be part of the comprehensive plan, the official said. There is no evidence that the arms embargo had any relation to the nuclear issue.
However, the Iranian position appears to have been strengthened by deep divisions over the issue among the six powers. The P5+1 minus Germany — which is not a permanent member of the Security Council — met on Monday night to review their negotiating position on the arms embargo, according to a senior…