Blinken: Reports of US Nuclear Deal with Iran ‘Not Accurate’

Blinken with Singapore's Foreign Minister Vivian Balakrishnan at the State Department, Friday, June 16, 2023, in Washington (AFP)
Blinken with Singapore's Foreign Minister Vivian Balakrishnan at the State Department, Friday, June 16, 2023, in Washington (AFP)
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Blinken: Reports of US Nuclear Deal with Iran ‘Not Accurate’

Blinken with Singapore's Foreign Minister Vivian Balakrishnan at the State Department, Friday, June 16, 2023, in Washington (AFP)
Blinken with Singapore's Foreign Minister Vivian Balakrishnan at the State Department, Friday, June 16, 2023, in Washington (AFP)

US Secretary of State Antony Blinken denied on Friday that negotiations between Washington and Tehran to curtail Iran’s nuclear program and free American detainees were close to completion.

In response to a question on indirect negotiations mediated by Oman, Blinken stated that “some of the reports that we’ve seen regarding an agreement on nuclear matters or, for that matter, on detainees, are simply not accurate and not true.”

On the nuclear side, he said that Washington is determined to ensure that Iran never acquires a nuclear weapon.

“We remain convinced that the best way to do that is through diplomacy. But we continue to believe that diplomacy would be the most effective path forward, but there is no agreement, and reports to the contrary or simply inaccurate,” the US Secretary of State affirmed.

An agency affiliated with Iran's Supreme National Security Council said earlier that the ongoing dialogue between Tehran and Washington through intermediaries increases the possibility of releasing US prisoners in return for the release of Iran's frozen assets.

Meanwhile, Iranian and Western officials told Reuters that the United States is holding talks with Iran to sketch out steps that could limit the Iranian nuclear program, release some detained US citizens and unfreeze some Iranian assets abroad.

These steps would be cast as an “understanding” rather than an agreement requiring review by the US Congress, where many lawmakers oppose giving Iran benefits because of its military aid to Russia, its domestic repression and its support for proxies that have attacked US interests in the region.

US officials appear to avoid saying they are seeking an “agreement” because of a 2015 law under which Congress must get the text of any accord about Iran's nuclear program, opening a window for legislators to review and potentially vote on it.

US House of Representatives Foreign Affairs Committee Chairman Michael McCaul, a Republican, wrote to Biden, a Democrat, on Thursday, saying “any arrangement or understanding with Iran, even informal, requires submission to Congress.”

Having failed to revive a 2015 Iran nuclear deal, US President Joe Biden's administration hopes to restore some limits on Iran to keep it from getting a nuclear weapon that could threaten Israel and trigger a regional arms race. Iran says it has no ambition to develop a nuclear weapon.

The US government has dismissed reports it is seeking an interim deal, using carefully constructed denials that leave open the possibility of a less formal “understanding” that could avoid congressional review.

State Department spokesperson Matt Miller denied there was any deal with Iran.

However, Miller said the United States wants Iran to de-escalate tensions and curb its nuclear program, cease support for regional proxy groups that carry out attacks, halt support for Russia's invasion of Ukraine and release detained American citizens.

“We continue to use diplomatic engagements to pursue all of these goals,” Miller added, without giving details.

An Iranian official said, “Call it whatever you want, whether a temporary deal, an interim deal or a mutual understanding - both sides want to prevent further escalation,” according to Reuters.

In the first instance, “that will involve prisoner exchange and unblocking part of Iran's frozen assets”, the official added, speaking on condition of anonymity.

Further steps might include US sanctions waivers for Iran to export oil in return for ceasing 60% uranium enrichment and greater Iranian cooperation with the UN nuclear watchdog, the official said.

In Tehran, spokesman for the Atomic Energy Organization of Iran Behrouz Kamalvand said on Thursday that Iran has reinstalled several cameras at Iranian nuclear facilities.

“As many as 29 cameras and devices had been removed, about 10 of which were reinstalled in Natanz [nuclear enrichment plant] in accordance with the agreement,” Kamalvandi was quoted as saying by IRNA.

Surveillance cameras were also brought back into operation at a centrifuge manufacturing workshop in Isfahan Province, according to the spokesman.

“This center is the same production line in Karaj, which was relocated to a safer place after the sabotage,” he said.

Kamalvandi noted, however, that the footage from the cameras will not be accessible for the agency and will be kept in Iran until an agreement is reached on the JCPOA.

Meanwhile, the Iranian news agency Nournews, affiliated with Iran's Supreme National Security Council, posted on Twitter a series of tweets about talks between Washington and Iran through intermediaries. They suggested a breakthrough in the case of the Americans detained in Tehran, in return for obtaining its frozen assets abroad.

The tweets did not address the potential nuclear concessions that Western sources had mentioned.

In this context, the news agency was seeking to publish a version of what was going on behind the scenes different from the image drawn by the US media.

At the same time, the tweets carry a message from the Supreme National Security Council, which is ruled by Supreme Leader Ali Khamenei.

The news agency stated that Iran’s policy over the past few months changed the political dynamics and yielded Western negotiations and concessions.

Meanwhile, a Western official, speaking on condition of anonymity, told Reuters “I'd call it a cooling-down understanding.”

This official added that there had been more than one round of indirect talks in Oman between US National Security Council official Brett McGurk and Iran's chief nuclear negotiator, Ali Bagheri Kani.

US Special Envoy for Iran Rob Malley has also met Iran's ambassador to the United Nations after months of Iran refusing direct contact.

The Western official said the idea was to create a status quo acceptable for all, getting Iran to avoid the Western redline of enriching to 90% purity, commonly viewed as weapons grade, and possibly even to "pause" its enrichment at 60%.

In addition to the 60% pause, both sides are discussing more Iranian cooperation with the International Atomic Energy Agency and not installing more advanced centrifuges in return for the "substantial transfer" of Iranian funds held abroad, the official added.

The official did not specify whether the pause meant Iran would commit not to enrich above 60% or whether it would stop enriching to 60% itself.

The Western official said the key US objective is to keep the nuclear situation from worsening and to avoid a potential clash between Israel and Iran.

“If (the) Iranians miscalculate, the potential for a strong Israeli response is something that we want to avoid,” the official said.

Meanwhile, a senior Israeli official told Haaretz that the Biden administration regularly updates Israel on its indirect talks with Iran, including the talks that took place in Oman last month.

He said the Israeli government hasn't yet decided on a definitive position on these talks. The same official also strongly denied allegations that Israel was somehow trying to sabotage the talks by leaking sensitive information.

 



Russia’s Top Diplomat Praises Trump’s Views on Ukraine Conflict

Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov smiles during his annual news conference in Moscow, Russia, Tuesday, Jan. 14, 2025. (AP)
Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov smiles during his annual news conference in Moscow, Russia, Tuesday, Jan. 14, 2025. (AP)
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Russia’s Top Diplomat Praises Trump’s Views on Ukraine Conflict

Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov smiles during his annual news conference in Moscow, Russia, Tuesday, Jan. 14, 2025. (AP)
Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov smiles during his annual news conference in Moscow, Russia, Tuesday, Jan. 14, 2025. (AP)

Russia’s top diplomat said Tuesday that Moscow is open for talks with President-elect Donald Trump and praised him for pointing to NATO's plan to embrace Ukraine as a root cause of the nearly 3-year-old conflict.

Any prospective peace talks should involve broader arrangements for security in Europe, Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov said at his annual news conference, while adding that Moscow is open to discussing security guarantees for Kyiv.

Lavrov specifically praised Trump's comments earlier this month in which he said that NATO’s plans to open its doors to Ukraine had led to the hostilities.

Trump said Russia had it "written in stone" that Ukraine's membership in NATO should never be allowed, but the Biden administration had sought to expand the military alliance to Russia's doorstep. Trump added that, "I could understand their feelings about that."

Trump's comments echoed Moscow’s rhetoric which has described its "special military operation" in Ukraine launched in February 2022 as a response to planned NATO membership for Kyiv and an effort to protect Russian speakers. Ukraine and its allies have denounced Russia's action as an unprovoked act of aggression.

"NATO did exactly what it had promised not to do, and Trump said that," Lavrov said. "It marked the first such candid acknowledgement not only from a US but any Western leader that NATO had lied when they signed numerous documents. They were used as a cover while NATO has expanded to our borders in violation of the agreements."

The West has dismissed that assessment. Before the conflict, Russia had demanded a legal guarantee that Ukraine be denied NATO entry, knowing the alliance has never excluded potential membership for any European country but had no immediate plan to start Ukraine down that road. Russia said NATO expansion would undermine its security, but Washington and its allies argued the alliance didn’t threaten Moscow

Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy has urged his Western allies to invite Kyiv to join NATO, or, at the very least, offer comprehensive security guarantees that would prevent any future Russian attacks. The alliance’s 32 member countries say Ukraine will join one day, but not until the fighting ends.

Trump has reaffirmed his intention to broker peace in Ukraine, declaring earlier this month that "Putin wants to meet" and that such a meeting is being set up. In the past, he has criticized US military aid for Ukraine and even vowed to end the conflict in a single day if elected.

Lavrov emphasized that Russian President Vladimir Putin has repeatedly declared his openness for talks with Trump, adding that Moscow looks forward to hearing Trump’s view on Ukraine after he takes office.

Lavrov also praised comments by Trump's pick for national security adviser, Mike Waltz, who said Sunday it's unrealistic to expect that Ukraine could drive Russian forces "from every inch of Ukrainian soil."

"The very fact that people have increasingly started to mention the realities on the ground deserves welcome," Lavrov said during his annual news conference un Moscow.

In its final days, the Biden administration is providing Kyiv with as much military support as it can, aiming to put Ukraine in the strongest position possible for any future negotiations. The US also introduced new sanctions on Russia's oil industry.

Lavrov described those efforts as an attempt by the Biden administration to "slam the door" and leave a difficult legacy for Trump. "The Democrats have a way of screwing things up for the incoming administration," he said.

He emphasized that any prospective peace talks must address Russia's security concerns and reflect a broad European security environment.

"Threats on the western flank, on our western borders, must be eliminated as one of the main reasons (of the conflict)," he said. "They can probably be eliminated only in the context of some broader agreements."

He added that Moscow is also open to discuss security guarantees for Kyiv, "for the country, which is now called Ukraine."

Lavrov was asked about Trump's comments in which he wouldn't rule out using force or economic pressure to make Greenland — a semiautonomous territory of Denmark — a part of the United States.

Lavrov emphasized that the people of Greenland must be asked what they want.

"For a start, it's necessary to listen to the Greenlanders," Lavrov said, noting that they have the right for self-determination if they believe that their interests aren't duly represented by Denmark.