Nuclear Deadline Should Not Be Missed: Daily

Tehran, Oct 18, IRNA - 'Iran Daily' on Saturday commenting on the new round of nuclear talks in Vienna, believes that if the current opportunity is lost, i.e to hammer out a final and comprehensive deal to end the decade-long dispute over Tehran's nuclar energy program, none can guarantee that the late November deadline will be extended and new talks held again in a friendly atmosphere. A prolonged process for settling the nuclear issue is not at all in Iran’s interest, underscored the English-language paper in its Opinion column. Both sides have already demonstrated strong determination to arrive at the landmark deal. US Secretary of State John Kerry has said the nuclear issue could be resolved and President Hassan Rouhani expressed hope that the case could be closed before the 24-November deadline, wrote the paper. Two issues of critical importance at the negotiating table are; the removal of sanctions for Iran and the level of uranium enrichment within Iran for the P5+1. The lifting of sanctions, which is a real source of concern for Iran, rests with the US. Iran does not trust radicals in US Congress because they do not plan to ease the sanctions—rather they demand a tightening of the noose. Iran insists on continuing its uranium enrichment program but the West is worried that the country will be able to enrich uranium beyond the five-percent limit whenever it desires and make nuclear bombs in a couple of months. That’s why the US and its allies seek a deal under which Iran would need at least one year to go militarily nuclear. This indicates that the West also does not trust Iran, noted the daily. The talks are being held in an atmosphere of mutual mistrust which is preventing a final agreement within a short period. Both sides need to alter their stances and make more concessions before it is too late. Bilateral and trilateral meetings between Foreign Minister Mohammad Javad Zarif, outgoing EU foreign policy chief Catherine Ashton and Kerry were very helpful in clarifying most of the ambiguities. Certain regional and international developments have had an impact on the nuclear talks. Tensions between Russia and the West over the crisis in Ukraine have had negative impact on the negotiations by slowing down the process. Russians lost their motivation to work with the West over the nuclear case after the US and the EU imposed sanctions on Moscow. The presence of ISIL terrorists in Iraq and Syria was another issue that affected the talks. Iran has announced that it would only cooperate with the West in the fight with ISIL if the P5+1 shows greater flexibility. The discord between Iran and the West over ISIL was reflected in the talks. How can they confront each other on one issue and work together on another one? questioned the paper. Both sides should draw lessons from these developments and not allow other issues to affect the nuclear talks, suggested the daily in conclusion.