The real issue for this pause here is what Russia has thrown on the table, which is essentially a grenade in the middle of the negotiations,” said Henry Rome, deputy head of research at the Eurasia Group who has been following the talks.
Last week, Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov said he wanted “guarantees at least at the level of the secretary of state” that the US sanctions would not affect Moscow’s relationship with Tehran.
While American officials sought to describe the demand as not related to the Vienna talks, matters swiftly stalled Friday with a tweet from Borrell.
“A pause in (hashtag) ViennaTalks is needed, due to external factors. A final text is essentially ready and on the table,” Borrell wrote. “As coordinator, I will, with my team, continue to be in touch with all (hashtag)JCPOA participants and the U.S. to overcome the current situation and to close the agreement.”
The JCPOA, or the Joint Comprehensive Plan of Action, is the formal name of the 2015 deal that saw Iran limit its uranium enrichment in exchange for the lifting of economic sanctions.
EU negotiator Enrique Mora met Friday with Iranian officials before telling journalists that “we are almost there” with the talks.
A report by Iran’s state-run IRNA news agency, quoting an anonymous source it described as close to Tehran’s negotiators, also suggested Russia’s demands caused the pause.
“There are some issues such as the issues between Russia and the United States, which, of course, will be unrelated to the issue of Iran’s talks … and that need to be resolved between the US and Russia,” IRNA quoted the source as saying.
However, Russian Ambassador Mikhail Ulyanov, speaking to journalists outside of the Vienna hotel where the talks took place, insisted: “I’m not aware of any impasse.” “Contacts will continue,” he said. “The conclusion of the deal does not depend on Russia only.”
Chinese Ambassador Wang Qun said negotiators “regret the pause” and added, “as we know, negotiation cannot be conducted in a political vacuum.