Divisions in Iran over the Impact of Ukraine Crisis on Vienna Talks

Deputy Secretary-General of the European External Action Service (EEAS) Enrique Mora and Iran's chief nuclear negotiator Ali Bagheri Kani wait for the start of a meeting of the JCPOA Joint Commission in Vienna, Austria December 3, 2021. EU Delegation in Vienna/Handout via REUTERS
Deputy Secretary-General of the European External Action Service (EEAS) Enrique Mora and Iran's chief nuclear negotiator Ali Bagheri Kani wait for the start of a meeting of the JCPOA Joint Commission in Vienna, Austria December 3, 2021. EU Delegation in Vienna/Handout via REUTERS
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Divisions in Iran over the Impact of Ukraine Crisis on Vienna Talks

Deputy Secretary-General of the European External Action Service (EEAS) Enrique Mora and Iran's chief nuclear negotiator Ali Bagheri Kani wait for the start of a meeting of the JCPOA Joint Commission in Vienna, Austria December 3, 2021. EU Delegation in Vienna/Handout via REUTERS
Deputy Secretary-General of the European External Action Service (EEAS) Enrique Mora and Iran's chief nuclear negotiator Ali Bagheri Kani wait for the start of a meeting of the JCPOA Joint Commission in Vienna, Austria December 3, 2021. EU Delegation in Vienna/Handout via REUTERS

The Iranian media is divided over the Russian position and the impact of the Ukrainian crisis on Vienna talks aimed at reviving the nuclear deal with world powers.

Nuclear negotiations are nearing the finish line with an announcement expected soon on a new deal to lift sanctions in exchange for renewed controls on uranium enrichment.

Parties supporting the 2015 nuclear agreement expressed optimism as the US State Department asserts it will maintain contact with Russia on issues considered key to its national security interests. These include talks to revive the Iran nuclear deal.

Analysts say the repercussions of the Ukrainian crisis on the efforts to revive the 2015 nuclear pact depend on future developments, the Iranian Labor News Agency (ILNA) reported.

The heightened tension may affect the talks, analysts note, warning against booting Russia off the Society for Worldwide Interbank Financial Telecommunications (SWIFT) or imposing sanctions targeting its oil and gas exports.

The state-run ISNA news agency has recently tried to answer frequently asked questions on the link between the Ukrainian crisis and the nuclear talks in Vienna.

Its analyst cited two factors that would have an impact on the talks. The first is linked to the phase the negotiations have reached, and the second is the depth of the Ukrainian crisis and possible military escalation.

The agency dismissed any long-term agreement between the West and Russia on outstanding issues.

According to Fararu news agency experts, the failure of talks will transfer the technical-political matter into a security issue, which Russia does not want.

Iran must pursue its interests regardless of the circumstances, former Deputy Foreign Minister Javad Larijani told IRNA, expressing “optimism” about the future of talks.

Former Iranian MP Heshmatollah Falahatpisheh told Arman Meli newspaper that Russians didn’t allow the deal to be signed before invading Ukraine.

He said the optimism expressed by Russia's representative at the talks, Mikhail Ulyanov, is a “big lie.”

Falahatpisheh further warned that Russia would sell the agreement in exchange for winning the war on Ukraine.



Danish PM Arrives in Greenland for Three-Day Visit amid Trump Pressure

Denmark's Prime Minister Mette Frederiksen, right, and her husband Bo Tengberg is greeted by Greenland's Acting Head of Government, Múte B. Egede after arriving at Nuuk airport, Greenland, Wednesday, April 2, 2025. (Ritzau Scanpix via AP)
Denmark's Prime Minister Mette Frederiksen, right, and her husband Bo Tengberg is greeted by Greenland's Acting Head of Government, Múte B. Egede after arriving at Nuuk airport, Greenland, Wednesday, April 2, 2025. (Ritzau Scanpix via AP)
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Danish PM Arrives in Greenland for Three-Day Visit amid Trump Pressure

Denmark's Prime Minister Mette Frederiksen, right, and her husband Bo Tengberg is greeted by Greenland's Acting Head of Government, Múte B. Egede after arriving at Nuuk airport, Greenland, Wednesday, April 2, 2025. (Ritzau Scanpix via AP)
Denmark's Prime Minister Mette Frederiksen, right, and her husband Bo Tengberg is greeted by Greenland's Acting Head of Government, Múte B. Egede after arriving at Nuuk airport, Greenland, Wednesday, April 2, 2025. (Ritzau Scanpix via AP)

Denmark's prime minister landed in Greenland on Wednesday for talks with the Danish semi-autonomous territory's incoming government, following US President Donald Trump's repeated expressions of interest in controlling the vast Arctic island.

Mette Frederiksen begins her three-day trip less than a week after a visit to the territory by US Vice President JD Vance received a frosty reception from authorities in Denmark and Greenland.

The Danish leader said ahead of her visit that she aims to strengthen Copenhagen's ties with the island and emphasized the importance of respectful cooperation amid what she described as "great pressure on Greenland".

Frederiksen was expected to speak to the media later on Wednesday.

Greenland's incoming Prime Minister Jens-Frederik Nielsen, who won last month's parliamentary election and will form a coalition government, has welcomed Frederiksen's trip, saying on Monday that Denmark remains "Greenland's closest partner".

Nielsen's new coalition is expected to formally take office on April 7.

Relations between Greenland and Denmark have been strained after revelations in recent years of historical mistreatment of Greenlanders under colonial rule. However, Trump's interest in controlling Greenland, part of a growing international focus on competition for influence in the Arctic, has prompted Denmark to hasten work to improve ties with the island.

Nielsen told Reuters late on Monday that Greenland would strengthen its ties with Denmark until it could fulfil its ultimate wish to become a sovereign nation.

'RESPECTFUL'

Meanwhile, Greenland wishes to establish a "respectful" relationship with the United States, he said.

"Talking about annexation and talking about acquiring Greenland and not respecting the sovereignty is not respectful. So let's start by being respectful to each other and build up a great partnership on everything," he said.

Frederiksen's visit is primarily about signaling support at a time of intense scrutiny, said Ulrik Pram Gad, an academic at the Danish Institute for International Studies.

"It is important for Denmark to signal to Greenland that Denmark is Greenland's closest friend and ally - and to the US that it stands behind Greenland," he said.

During his visit to a US military base in northern Greenland last Friday, Vance accused Denmark of not doing a good job of keeping the island safe and suggested the United States would better protect the strategically-located territory.

Frederiksen, who has said it is up to the people of Greenland to decide their own future, called Vance's description of Denmark "not fair".

Opinion polls show that a majority of Greenland's 57,000 inhabitants support independence from Denmark, but many oppose seeking independence too quickly, fearing their island could become worse off and expose itself to US interests.