The U.S. told Iran through EU mediators that linking the UN investigation of Iran's undeclared nuclear activity to the reimplementation of the 2015 nuclear deal could delay lifting U.S. sanctions, according to a U.S. official and a think tank expert briefed on the issue.
Why it matters: The issue of the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) investigations is one of the two remaining stumbling blocks in returning to the 2015 nuclear agreement.
- Tehran demands the IAEA probes that focus on uranium particles UN investigators found at several Iranian sites be closed ahead of “reimplementation day” — 120 days after a new nuclear deal is signed.
Driving the news: According to the draft nuclear deal presented by the EU, the agreement's implementation would take place in several stages. The parties would move to the next stage only after full implementation of the steps they committed to taking, sources briefed on the draft said.
- Stage three — reimplementation day — is expected to take place four months after the nuclear deal is signed. In this stage, Iran is expected to finish implementing all of the limitations on its nuclear program and resume the full IAEA inspection regime on its nuclear sites, the sources said.
- The U.S. in return would lift all secondary sanctions on Iran and take other steps, including engaging with the private sector on how to do business with Iran.
Iranian President Ebrahim Raisi said on Monday that resolving the IAEA investigation issue is a pillar of any nuclear deal and without it, “It is meaningless to talk about an agreement."
Between the lines: The four-month period between signing...