Tehran Rejects Re-negotiation of Nuclear Deal With Biden
Iranian Foreign Minister Mohammad Javad Zarif (Wikipedia)
On the eve of the U.S. presidential elections, Iranian Foreign Minister Mohammad Javad Zarif declared that Iran would not renegotiate the terms of the Joint Comprehensive Plan of Action (JCPOA), better known as the Iran Nuclear Deal, with President-Elect Biden. During his campaign, Biden pledged to revisit the JCPOA agreement negotiated under the Obama administration in 2015 but abandoned by President Trump in May 2018. Zarif, however, dismissed the idea, saying that “If we wanted to do that, we would have done it with Trump four years ago.”
The JCPOA lifted sanctions placed on Iran in return for restrictions on its nuclear development capabilities. Lambasting these restrictions as inadequate, Trump withdrew and re-imposed sanctions as part of a broader maximum pressure campaign. The Iranian government has since had no desire to renegotiate the deal and sanctions remain in place.
The International Atomic Energy Agency recently published details documenting that since the United States’ withdrawal from the 8-party accord, Iran has flouted the restrictions imposed. Biden has promised that “If Iran returns to strict compliance with the nuclear deal… the United States would rejoin the agreement as a starting point for follow-on negotiations.” Rejoining would not face too many hurdles, especially considering that European partners remained dedicated to the agreement even after American abandonment. Rejoining the accord under the same conditions as those imposed in 2015 would mark the first test of Biden’s appeasement policy long feared by opponents of the deal.
Outside factors notwithstanding, Iran has experienced several domestic developments since 2018. A more hardline political balance in the country has taken hold, making it particularly challenging for Tehran to attempt alterations to the deal. Nevertheless, Tehran has drafted preconditions to its return to the JCPOA, including Washington guaranteeing to never abandon the deal in the future and Iran receiving compensation for “damages” it has suffered since the United States’ withdrawal. In effect, Iran hopes that the U.S. will apologize for the maximum pressure campaign waged by Trump.
Though we cannot yet know what Biden aims to undertake during his mandate, Iran will likely not meet the U.S. halfway as before. As put by Behnam Ben Taleblu of FDD in Washington, “Tehran sees Trump’s defeat as a vindication of its resistance policy. This will have devastating consequences for those who think diplomacy with Iran post-Trump will be cheap or easy.”