Iran nuclear talks paused after Russian demands

VIENNA AFP, 11 March, 2022- The EU announced a pause Friday in the talks it is chairing on the revival of the 2015 Iran nuclear deal, days after fresh Russian demands complicated negotiations which had appeared close to completion.   

The EU’s foreign policy chief Josep Borrell tweeted that the pause was “due to external factors,” despite the fact that “a final text is essentially ready and on the table”.   

The current round of negotiations started in late November in the Austrian capital Vienna between Britain, China, France, Germany, Iran and Russia, with the US taking part indirectly.   

They had progressed most of the way toward their aim -- the revival of the 2015 Joint Comprehensive Plan of Action (JCPOA), which began unravelling when former US President Donald Trump withdrew from the deal in 2018.   

The EU diplomat who has been personally chairing the talks, Enrique Mora, told reporters that delegations had got to the point of “negotiating footnotes”.