Iran negotiator hails recognition of nuclear program

A senior Iranian nuclear negotiator says international recognition of the Islamic Republic’s nuclear program has been the greatest achievement of the nuclear talks between Tehran and the P5+1 group in Lausanne, Switzerland.

At the end of eight days of intensive nuclear negotiations in Lausanne on Thursday, Iran and the P5+1 states – Russia, China, France, Britain, the US and Germany – adopted a joint statement calling, among other things, for the removal of UN Security Council resolutions and sanctions against the Islamic Republic.

Abbas Araqchi, the deputy foreign minister for legal and international affairs, pointed to the joint statement, saying it officially recognizes Iran’s nuclear program.

“According to this statement, the Islamic Republic of Iran’s nuclear program will be credited and recognized internationally, and this is our greatest achievement,” Araqchi said in a telephone interview with IRIB on Thursday night following the release of the statement.

He said that the statement was the result of nearly 16 months of negotiations, adding that Iran has managed to achieve the “basic demands” it was pursuing in the course of the talks.  

The senior diplomat said that Iran fulfilled the opposite side’s demand in the negotiations, which was confidence-building over the peaceful nature of Tehran’s nuclear program.

In return, Iran’s “basic and legitimate demands,” the most significant of which was the international recognition of the country’s nuclear program, were met in the negotiations, Araqchi added.

According to the joint statement, none of Iran’s nuclear facilities will be stopped, shut down or suspended and Iran’s nuclear activities in all its nuclear facilities including Natanz, Fordow, Isfahan and Arak will continue.

Following the implementation of the Joint Comprehensive Plan of Action (JCPOA), the statement noted, all sanctions by the UN Security Council, the US and the EU will be lifted, and the P5+1 countries should avoid imposing any new nuclear-related sanctions against Iran.

Reactions to the statement

Reactions poured following the announcement of the mutual understanding reached between Iran and the P5+1, with the Iranian President Hassan Rouhani being among the first to hail the agreement.

Rouhani said in a post on his Twitter account that key parameters of the JCPOA had been agreed in Tehran’s nuclear talks with major powers, adding that drafting of an agreement would start immediately.

In a statement, Yukiya Amano, the director general of the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA), also welcomed the statement, saying the IAEA “will be ready to fulfill its role in verifying the implementation of nuclear-related measures, once the agreement is finalized.”

Meanwhile, Russia also expressed satisfaction with the successful outcome of the Iranian nuclear talks in Lausanne.

Russian Deputy Foreign Minister Sergei Ryabkov called for the adoption of a new resolution at the UN Security Council on the joint statement, which he said is necessary for the implementation of the measures stipulated in the agreement.

He also expressed hope that the UN would start lifting sanctions imposed against Iran in the near future.

Representatives of Iran and the P5+1 group of countries along with senior officials of the European Union have held intense talks to narrow their differences on Tehran’s nuclear activities.

The joint statement is a sign that Iran and its negotiating partners have come to a mutual understanding over Iran’s nuclear program and will work to draw up a final accord by the end of the self-designated June 30 deadline.

AR/MKA/HMV

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