EU official: Talks with Iran could resume in September

Iran is ready to resume talks on reviving the 2015 nuclear deal with world powers under new president Ebrahim Raisi, and meetings could take place in Vienna from early September, an EU official said on Saturday, according to AFP.

The senior official, speaking on condition of anonymity, said the EU's negotiator on the file, Enrique Mora, attended Raisi's swearing-in in Tehran last Thursday and spoke with the Iranian official designated to take charge of the nuclear talks, Hossein Amir-Abdollahian.

Amir-Abdollahian "is supposed to be the new foreign minister" in Raisi's cabinet, but that has not yet been announced, the EU official said.

He added that it was unclear whether the nuclear talks would remain under the responsibility of the Iranian foreign ministry or be taken over by another body.

Raisi was sworn in as president of Iran on Thursday, vowing to bring an end to US sanctions on the Islamic Republic, denouncing the sanctions as “illegal”.

Iran has gradually scaled back its compliance with the 2015 deal in response to former US President Donald Trump’s withdrawal from the agreement in 2018, but has been holding indirect talks with the Biden administration on a return to the agreement.

However, Iran recently paused the talks and announced they will not resume before the Raisi government takes office.

US Secretary of State Antony Blinken said last week that nuclear talks with Iran "cannot go on indefinitely" but that Washington was "fully prepared" to continue negotiations.

"We're committed to diplomacy, but this process cannot go on indefinitely... we look to see what Iran is ready to do or not ready to do and remain fully prepared to return to Vienna to continue negotiations," he stated.

His remarks were echoed by German Foreign Minister Heiko Maas, who said that Iran is "delaying" talks to salvage the 2015 nuclear deal and warned that the option to revive the deal would not remain open forever.