Grossi Urges Iran to Reach an Understanding with Trump

21 January 2025, Switzerland, Davos: Director General of the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) Rafael Grossi speaks at "Road to Tripling Nuclear Capacity session" during the World Economic Forum Annual Meeting. (Valeriano Di Domenico/World Economic Forum/dpa)
21 January 2025, Switzerland, Davos: Director General of the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) Rafael Grossi speaks at "Road to Tripling Nuclear Capacity session" during the World Economic Forum Annual Meeting. (Valeriano Di Domenico/World Economic Forum/dpa)
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Grossi Urges Iran to Reach an Understanding with Trump

21 January 2025, Switzerland, Davos: Director General of the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) Rafael Grossi speaks at "Road to Tripling Nuclear Capacity session" during the World Economic Forum Annual Meeting. (Valeriano Di Domenico/World Economic Forum/dpa)
21 January 2025, Switzerland, Davos: Director General of the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) Rafael Grossi speaks at "Road to Tripling Nuclear Capacity session" during the World Economic Forum Annual Meeting. (Valeriano Di Domenico/World Economic Forum/dpa)

The head of the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) urged on Tuesday Iran to reach an understanding over its atomic activity with the administration of US President Donald Trump in order to avoid being dragged into another military conflict in the Middle East.

UN nuclear watchdog chief Rafael Grossi said that Iran has accelerated its enrichment of uranium to up to 60% purity, close to the roughly 90% level that is weapons grade.

He spoke about Trump’s decision six-and-a-half years ago to quit the 2015 nuclear deal that gave Tehran sanctions relief in exchange for strict limits on its nuclear activities.

“There was an agreement that existed before President Trump decided that was not the path he wanted to follow,” Grossi said at the World Economic Forum in Davos. “Now we need to come to terms with how we deal with this, excluding of course, a war. We don’t want more wars.”

He confirmed Iran continues to produce large quantities of highly-enriched uranium. In December, Tehran’s engineers increased capacity sevenfold, to about 34 kilograms a month in response to a diplomatic censure in November.

Iran ready for more talks

Meanwhile, Iran threw the ball into the West’s court, declaring its readiness to revive negotiations on its advanced nuclear program.

Deputy Foreign Minister Kazem Gharibabadi said on Tuesday his country wants to pursue discussions with European nations (France, Germany and the UK) after both sides held a third round of talks in Geneva last week.

“We agreed to continue discussions. We will determine the date and time for them through joint consultations,” he said.

Both Iran and the so-called E3 countries had described previous talks as “frank and constructive.” Iran said the third round, which started last September in New York, aimed at exploring how Tehran can return to the negotiations table.

Gharibabadi said: “The most logical path forward is to initiate talks on lifting sanctions.”

Speaking to reporters, he reiterated Iran's willingness to engage in diplomacy. The country, as always, is ready to initiate and resume negotiations aimed at lifting sanctions, he said.

“We have consistently been prepared, and if the other parties demonstrate the same readiness, we are confident that talks can proceed and yield positive results,” he said, according to the state-owned Iranian Students' News Agency (ISNA).

He underscored the peaceful nature of Iran’s nuclear program, adding that “there are proper opportunities for dialogue and understanding” and noting that “unilateral sanctions were ineffective.”

Both US and Iranian officials have sent mixed signals about whether they were headed to a confrontation or explore diplomatic solutions now that Trump has assumed office.

Maximum pressure

Tehran fears that Trump will return to his previous “maximum pressure” policy that he had applied on Iran during his first term in office. It also fears Britain, France and Germany could trigger the so-called “snapback mechanism,” part of the 2015 deal, which allows signatories to reimpose UN sanctions on Iran in cases of the “significant non-performance” of commitments.

The option to trigger the mechanism expires in October this year, adding urgency to the ongoing diplomatic efforts.

Last Friday, reports said Iranian officials had informed their European counterparts that Tehran would withdraw from the Nuclear Non-Proliferation Treaty if the snapback mechanism is implemented.

Last week, Bloomberg reported that Trump could blow a $30 billion hole in Iran’s economy should he return reimpose his maximum pressure policy.

It said the president’s key advisers are looking at a big sanctions package that hits major players in Iran’s oil industry, which could come as early as February.

On Sunday, Trump’s national security adviser, Mike Waltz, said in an interview that the administration will make key decisions concerning Iran over the next month.

He said the Israeli strikes against Hamas and Hezbollah, in addition to the fall of Bashar al-Assad's regime in Syria, have all prepared the circumstances for the US to soon take strategic decisions.



Ukrainians Worry about Trump Effort to End War with Russia, Though Some Hope for the Best

A flower vendor waits for customers a day before St. Valentine's Day on a street in the city of Kramatorsk, on February 13, 2025, amid the Russian invasion of Ukraine. (AFP)
A flower vendor waits for customers a day before St. Valentine's Day on a street in the city of Kramatorsk, on February 13, 2025, amid the Russian invasion of Ukraine. (AFP)
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Ukrainians Worry about Trump Effort to End War with Russia, Though Some Hope for the Best

A flower vendor waits for customers a day before St. Valentine's Day on a street in the city of Kramatorsk, on February 13, 2025, amid the Russian invasion of Ukraine. (AFP)
A flower vendor waits for customers a day before St. Valentine's Day on a street in the city of Kramatorsk, on February 13, 2025, amid the Russian invasion of Ukraine. (AFP)

Ukrainians on Thursday worried that US President Donald Trump was preparing to sell out their country following his phone call with Russian President Vladimir Putin, though some expressed cautious hope over his effort to swiftly end the war.

Trump's call to the Russian president - the first by a US leader since Moscow's February 2022 invasion - followed remarks by his defense chief that cast doubt over the full restoration of Ukraine's borders and its aspiration to join the NATO alliance.

"It truly looks as if they want to surrender Ukraine, because I don't see any benefits for our country of these negotiations or Trump's rhetoric," said Kyiv resident Myroslava Lesko, 23, standing near a sea of flags downtown honoring fallen troops.

Ukraine has tried to urgently forge close ties with the new Trump administration, offering a minerals deal to win US favor, while Russian forces, already occupying a fifth of Ukraine, keep up battlefield pressure.

Ukraine wants the White House to back any peace talks with security guarantees that would stop Russia invading again.

The Trump call with Putin on Wednesday and remarks by Pete Hegseth, who said NATO membership for Ukraine was unrealistic and that the US would not be sending in troops as peacekeepers, have shocked some of Kyiv's allies who believe Washington is sacrificing negotiating leverage.

Trump spoke with Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskiy after his call with Putin.

In interviews with Reuters, Kyiv residents reacted to the prospect of fast-track peace talks with a mix of dismay and careful optimism.

"Trump is a strong-willed person," said 60-year-old Hryhoriy Buhoyets. "He can decide on whatever he wants, and regarding Ukraine, I think he has some plans."

Maksym Zhorin, deputy commander of the Third Assault Brigade fighting in the war, wrote on the Telegram app that he had not expected Ukraine to receive quick NATO membership anyway.

"NATO is not ready for war with the Russian Federation. This is evident from their reaction to events and behavior," he said.

Tymofiy Mylovanov, president of the Kyiv School of Economics, said it looked like the Trump administration's views were in fact largely in keeping with those of the previous Joe Biden administration.

Some Ukrainians have expressed frustration that the US under Biden, despite providing billions in military aid, had not done enough to tip the war in Kyiv's favor.

"The difference between Biden and Trump is that Trump says out loud what Biden was thinking and doing about Ukraine," Mylovanov wrote on X.

'FASTEN YOUR SEATBELTS'

Ukrainian Foreign Minister Andrii Sybiha told Le Monde newspaper in an interview released on Thursday that Ukraine and Europe should not be excluded from future peace talks.

Oleksandr Merezhko, head of the Ukrainian parliament's foreign affairs committee, told Reuters it would be crucial "to establish systematic contact between Zelenskiy and Trump, so that they talk constantly rather than episodically".

He added that Ukraine should keep pushing for NATO membership despite Hegseth's comments: "Our survival depends on this. We will keep knocking on the door ... until it opens, because we have no other choice."

Another lawmaker urged Ukrainians - many of whom have lost family members in fighting that has killed tens of thousands and ravaged swathes of the country - not to jump to any conclusions after the remarks.

"Ukraine doesn't exist because someone had a good conversation on the phone with someone. We survived because we showed the world that we can fight," said opposition member Oleksii Honcharenko.

Some officials, who have been lavishing praise on Trump in their effort to build relations, have tried to quickly extinguish what one of them described as "too many unnecessary rumors and conspiracy theories".

"A difficult process of fighting for Ukraine lies ahead, and we will go through it in unity," said Daria Zarivna, an adviser to Zelenskiy's chief of staff.

Olena Chiupika, 38, a manager in Kyiv, said Ukraine had already proven successful at securing foreign support that had once seemed unrealistic, citing the F-16 fighter jets provided by allies.

"I'm hoping for the best," she said. "I would like to, because the mood is not great."

The next diplomatic test for Ukraine is expected at the Munich Security Conference this weekend when Zelenskiy is likely to meet US Vice President JD Vance.

Hanna Maliar, a former deputy defense minister, appeared to acknowledge the uncertainty of the moment.

"Fasten your seatbelts. We're taking off," she said shortly after news broke of Trump's call with Putin. "A fascinating journey awaits us. The final destination is so far unknown."