Europe rejects Tehran’s demands in nuclear talks

BRUSSELS — Western negotiators trying to revive the 2015 Iran nuclear deal said the new, more hard-line government in Iran is proposing unacceptable changes to the existing draft agreement, even as it is proceeding apace with its nuclear program.

Unless Tehran shifts its stance quickly, diplomats from Britain, France and Germany warned Friday after five days of meetings in Vienna, there is little possibility of a successful negotiation. The talks were suspended for consultations with governments and may resume this week.

“Over five months ago, Iran interrupted negotiations, and since then, Iran has fast-forwarded its nuclear program,” the three said in a joint statement. “This week, it has backtracked on diplomatic progress made. Iran is breaking with almost all of the difficult compromises crafted in months of tough negotiations and is demanding substantial changes to the text” that undermine the draft, which was between 70% and 80% finished, they said.

Iran says it wants to return to the 2015 deal, known formally as the Joint Comprehensive Plan of Action. But the Europeans said some of Iran’s proposals are not only inconsistent with that deal but also “go beyond” its provisions.

“It is unclear,’’ they said, “how these new gaps can be closed in a realistic time frame on the basis of the Iranian drafts.” While European governments “remain fully committed to a diplomatic way forward,” they said, “time is running out.”

It was the first set of negotiations after a five-month hiatus while a new Iranian government took office and considered its stance toward the nuclear deal, which former President Donald Trump abandoned in May 2018. Trump then piled on punishing economic sanctions in an effort to bring Iran back to the negotiating table in a weaker position or even to collapse the government itself.

The pressure campaign failed. The Biden administration wants to revive the deal and extend its duration to 25 years from 15. But Iran not only wants all sanctions lifted, but also wants to preserve some of the major investment it has made in building advanced centrifuges and enriching uranium far beyond what the agreement permitted.

Enrichment raises the proportion of fuel that is uranium-235, the most potent form of the element.