Iran And The European Trio Meet In Geneva Continue Nuclear Negotiations

Senior Iranian officials and three major European powers are scheduled to meet in Geneva on Tuesday to discuss Western demands that Iran revive nuclear inspections and diplomacy or face the reimposition of sanctions that have been lifted under a 2015 deal.

France, Britain, and Germany, known as E3 aka the European Trio, have long threatened to trigger a "snapback" sanction at the United Nations Security Council (UN) on October 18, when the nuclear deal, which has now been largely canceled, was reached 10 years ago between Tehran and major countries. ended.

They recently stated plans to decide by the end of August unless Iran offers a concession that could convince them to temporarily postpone the agreement, which is often referred to as an extension.

Negotiations are tense as Iran is furious at the bombing of its nuclear facilities by the US and Israel, allies of the E3.

"We will see if Iran is credible about the extension or whether they are playing with us. We want to see if they have made progress in the requirements we set to be extended," said an E3 official.

The requirement is the resumption of inspections, including a large Iran-enriched count of uranium stocks, and is involved in diplomacy, including with the United States.

Iran has repeatedly rejected direct negotiations with Washington.

Israel and the United States say they need to attack Iran's uranium enrichment sites as Iran is making rapid progress in producing nuclear weapons.

Tehran denies any intention to develop an atomic bomb.

Iran has enriched uranium to 60% purity, just one step away from about 90% of weapons levels, and has enough enriched material to that extent, if further enriched, for six nuclear weapons before the attacks began on June 13.

However, actually producing weapons will take longer. The International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) has stated that although it cannot guarantee Tehran's nuclear program is completely peaceful, it has no credible indication of a coordinated weapons program in Iran.

Although Iran's enrichment facility has been badly damaged or destroyed, Iran has not provided IAEA with access since its attack, arguing the facility is unsafe for inspectors.

The status and presence of large amounts of Iran's enriched uranium reserves is also unclear.

"Due to the damage to our nuclear site, we need to agree on a new plan with the agency and we have conveyed it to IAEA officials," an Iranian official said.

Western officials said they suspected Iran had returned to using the negotiation tactics aimed at buying time and stalling for negotiations.

The European trio aka E3 will seek to determine in their negotiations on Tuesday whether it is now a reality.

Tehran has warned of a "hard response" if sanctions are reinstated.