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.
