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Washington ‘Drags’ Tehran to Negotiations as Military Option Remains on the Table

US President Donald Trump (Reuters)
US President Donald Trump (Reuters)
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Washington ‘Drags’ Tehran to Negotiations as Military Option Remains on the Table

US President Donald Trump (Reuters)
US President Donald Trump (Reuters)

The administration of US President Donald Trump is intensifying pressure on Iranian authorities to adopt a clearer stance and to “drag” them into direct negotiations, without ruling out military options.

While attention is focused on the US administration's pressure and its potential success in curbing Iran, the latter may counter Trump by leveraging “international and regional cards,” according to an American researcher.

Earlier, Axios reported that President Trump’s message to Iran set a two-month deadline for reaching a new nuclear deal, warning of consequences if the offer is rejected and Iran continues its nuclear program.

An American official and two sources familiar with the message told Axios that "Trump does not want open-ended negotiations with the Iranians."

Trump's National Security Advisor, Mike Waltz, urged Iran to abandon all elements of its nuclear program, including missiles, armament, and uranium enrichment, or face a full range of other consequences.

While the White House has not officially confirmed a deadline for Tehran, Brian Katulis, a senior fellow at the Middle East Institute in Washington, suggested that Trump wants Iran's leadership to focus their thinking on taking a stance and moving seriously toward the negotiating table.

“Iran is facing critical decisions regarding its nuclear program and influence in the Middle East, while the Trump administration is pushing (by setting the deadline) for a clearer response than Iran has given so far,” Katulis told Asharq Al-Awsat.

According to Katulis, military action against Iran remains a possibility, but Trump’s approach toward Iran is still unclear.

For his part, Patrick Clawson, a senior fellow at the Washington Institute for Near East Policy, believes Trump wants to demonstrate his ability to reach agreements on Ukraine, Lebanon, Gaza, and Iran, while Biden has been unable to do so.

Clawson told Asharq Al-Awsat, “In each case, Trump has said: 'Make a deal or you’ll pay a heavy price,' and for Iran, the 'heavy price' will become clear by the summer.”

 

 

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Iran Says It Will Respond to Reimposition of UN Sanctions

Iranian Foreign Ministry spokesman Esmaeil Baghaei. (Iranian Foreign Ministry)
Iranian Foreign Ministry spokesman Esmaeil Baghaei. (Iranian Foreign Ministry)
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Iran Says It Will Respond to Reimposition of UN Sanctions

Iranian Foreign Ministry spokesman Esmaeil Baghaei. (Iranian Foreign Ministry)
Iranian Foreign Ministry spokesman Esmaeil Baghaei. (Iranian Foreign Ministry)

Iran will react to any reimposition of United Nations sanctions over its nuclear program, the country's foreign ministry spokesperson said on Monday, without elaborating on what actions Tehran might take.

A French diplomatic source told Reuters last week that European powers would have to restore UN sanctions on Iran under the so-called "snapback mechanism" if there were no nuclear deal that guaranteed European security interests.

The "snapback mechanism" is a process that would reimpose UN sanctions on Tehran under a 2015 nuclear deal that lifted the measures in return for restrictions on Iran's nuclear program.

"The threat to use the snapback mechanism lacks legal and political basis and will be met with an appropriate and proportionate response from Iran," Foreign Ministry spokesperson Esmaeil Baghaei told a press conference, without giving further details.

The 2015 deal with Britain, Germany, France, the US, Russia and China - known as the Joint Comprehensive Plan of Action (JCPOA) - states that if the parties cannot resolve accusations of "significant non-performance" by Iran, the "snapback mechanism" process can be triggered by the 15-member UN Security Council.

"The European parties, who are constantly trying to use this possibility as a tool, have themselves committed gross and fundamental violations of their obligations under the JCPOA," Baghaei said.

"They have failed to fulfill the duties they had undertaken under the JCPOA, so they have no legal or moral standing to resort to this mechanism."

Western countries accuse Iran of plotting to build a nuclear weapon, which Tehran denies.

The United States pulled out of the deal in 2018 under the first administration of President Donald Trump, who called the agreement "weak".

Trump, whose second presidency began in January, has urged Tehran to return to nuclear negotiations on a new deal after a ceasefire was reached last month that ended a 12-day air war between Iran and Israel that destabilized the Middle East.

When asked if Iranian Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi would meet with Trump's Middle East envoy, Steve Witkoff, Baghaei said no date or location had been set for resuming the US-Iran nuclear talks.