PDA

View Full Version : US Warns It Is Ready to Walk Away From Iran Nuclear Talks




Suzanimal
02-21-2015, 04:06 PM
With only weeks left to the deadline to reach a first-stage nuclear deal with Iran, U.S. Secretary of State John Kerry said Saturday that "significant gaps" remained and warned that America was ready to walk away from the talks if Tehran doesn't agree to terms demonstrating that it doesn't want atomic arms.

Kerry spoke after the Iranian Atomic Energy chief Ali Akbar Salehi and U.S. Energy Secretary Ernest Moniz added their muscle to the talks for the first time to help resolve technical disputes standing in the way of an agreement meant to curb Iran's nuclear programs in exchange for sanctions relief for the Islamic Republic.

But Kerry warned against undue optimism. Salehi's and Moniz's presence is no "indication whatsoever that something is about to be decided," he said. "There are still significant gaps."

World powers and Iran have set an end of March deadline for a framework agreement, with four further months for the technical work to be ironed out. The talks have missed two previous deadlines, and President Barack Obama has said a further extension would make little sense without a basis for continuing discussions.

Kerry, who flies to Geneva Sunday from London, said there was no doubt Obama was serious. The president, he said, "is fully prepared to stop these talks if he feels that they're not being met with the kind of productive decision-making necessary to prove that a program is in fact peaceful."

If the talks fail, Obama may be unable to continue holding off Congress from passing new sanctions against Iran. That, in turn, could scuttle any further diplomatic solution to U.S.-led attempts to increase the time Tehran would need to be able to make nuclear arms. Iran denies any interest in such weapons.

Skepticism about the negotiations already is strong among congressional hardliners, Washington's closest Arab allies and Israel's Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, who is expected to strongly criticize them in an address the U.S. Congress early next month.

Western officials say the U.S. decided to send Moniz only after Iran announced that Salehi was coming. They were expected to discuss the number of centrifuges Iran can operate to enrich uranium; how much enriched material it can stockpile; what research and development it may pursue related to enrichment, and the future of a planned heavy water reactor that could produce substantial amounts of plutonium — which like enriched uranium is a potential pathway to nuclear arms.

Iranian Foreign Minister Mohammad Javad Zarif is also at the talks, and Kerry is to meet him Sunday and Monday.

For months, the negotiations have been primarily between Washington and Tehran. But Kerry insisted "there is absolutely no divergence" between the U.S. and the five other powers — Russia, China, Britain, France and Germany — over what Iran needed to agree to, "to prove that its nuclear program is going to be peaceful in the future."

http://abcnews.go.com/International/wireStory/top-us-iranian-nuke-officials-joining-iran-talks-29123530


Related

http://www.ronpaulforums.com/showthread.php?469325-Iran-has-stopped-questionable-nuclear-centrifuge-testing-IAEA

TheTexan
02-21-2015, 04:35 PM
Why hasn't the CIA just installed another puppet government yet?

Unless it already has... :eek:

Zippyjuan
02-21-2015, 07:54 PM
Grandstanding. Iran has been making positive moves and concessions. Article from about a month ago:
http://www.cnn.com/2014/01/20/world/meast/iran-nuclear-deal/


Iran says it's implementing interim nuclear deal

Iran started suspending high levels of uranium enrichment Monday as an interim deal struck with six world powers went into effect, state media reported, making way for more talks and fewer sanctions.

All of its voluntary moves will be completed by Monday evening, Iran's nuclear spokesman Behrouz Kamalvandi told state-run news agency IRNA.

The United States and European Union announced that they were suspending certain sanctions for six months as part of the deal.

"In reciprocation for Iran's concrete actions, the United States and its P5+1 partners -- the United Kingdom, France, Germany, Russia, and China -- as well as the European Union will today follow through on our commitment to begin to provide the modest relief agreed to with Iran," said White House spokesman Jay Carney. "At the same time, we will continue our aggressive enforcement of the sanctions measures that will remain in place throughout this six-month period."

Iran stopped enrichment of uranium to the 20% purity level and disconnected cascades of centrifuges enriching uranium in Natanz, a top nuclear official told state-run Press TV.



More at link.

And this week: http://www.mintpressnews.com/iaea-iran-halts-new-sensitive-nuclear-centrifuge-tests/202330/


IAEA: Iran Halts New Sensitive Nuclear Centrifuge Tests

"The disconnection reflects Iran addressing concerns about its enrichment (of uranium)," said the Washington-based Institute for Science and International Security (ISIS), which closely tracks Iran's nuclear program.

Iran has refrained from expanding tests of more efficient models of a centrifuge used to refine uranium under a nuclear agreement with six world powers, a UN report showed, allaying concerns it might be violating the accord.

An interim accord in 2013 between Iran and the United States, France, Germany, Britain, China and Russia stipulated Tehran could continue its “current enrichment R&D (research and development) practices,” implying they should not be stepped up.

But a UN nuclear agency report in November said Iran had been feeding one of several new models under development, the so-called IR-5 centrifuge, with uranium gas, prompting a debate among analysts on whether this may have been a violation.

A confidential document by the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA), distributed among its member states on Thursday and obtained by Reuters, showed the IR-5 had been disconnected.

“The disconnection reflects Iran addressing concerns about its enrichment (of uranium),” said the Washington-based Institute for Science and International Security (ISIS), which closely tracks Iran’s nuclear program.

“The disconnection provides additional confidence that Iran is abiding by its commitments under the Joint Plan of Action,” it said, referring to the 2013 agreement.

International talks have been resumed in Geneva on Friday with the aim of narrowing remaining gaps in negotiations to end Iran’s 12-year standoff with the six powers.

Washington suspects Iran’s nuclear program is designed to develop nuclear weapons; Iran denies this, saying it is for peaceful purposes.

The deal sought by the powers would have Iran accept limits to its uranium enrichment capacity and open up to unfettered IAEA inspections.

In return, Iran would see a lifting of international trade and financial sanctions that hobbled its oil-based economy.

More at link.

NorthCarolinaLiberty
02-21-2015, 08:03 PM
Grandstanding.

But you're all for Israel having nuclear arms while curbing others. Right? Aren't you a big supporter of Israel?

Zippyjuan
02-22-2015, 12:27 PM
Perhaps you can link to some of my threads on Israel. What are my comments on Israel having nukes? Heck- what are my comments on Israel?

Good luck finding anything.

enhanced_deficit
02-22-2015, 09:16 PM
Perhaps you can link to some of my threads on Israel. What are my comments on Israel having nukes? Heck- what are my comments on Israel?

Good luck finding anything.

Zippy, do you have a view on this, should US support or oppose right of Iran and/or Israel to build nuclear energy?

Should US sanction/invade them if they don't come to table to discuss their programs?

AngryCanadian
02-22-2015, 09:43 PM
Perhaps you can link to some of my threads on Israel. What are my comments on Israel having nukes? Heck- what are my comments on Israel?

Good luck finding anything.


Ok why dont you go yourself personally to Iran and see if they have WMDs like how we were lied about Iraq.

Zippyjuan
02-22-2015, 11:11 PM
Iran first and foremost wants nuclear energy. Like many countries in the Middle East, they rely heavily on oil revenues to fund their government. But their domestic demand has been rising faster than their oil production (in part due to sanctions) so they want another energy source to free up more oil for selling abroad. But then they have also watched the US invading countries surrounding them and get more concerned about their own security. They also see that countries who do have nuclear weapons tend to not get invaded anymore. Note that India and Pakistan used to fight regular border skirmishes of varying intensities for years until they both went nuclear. Then they agreed to play nice. They would not mind having such a deterrent but can live without one.

Iran has not attacked any other country. Even the deadly Iraq/ Iran war was not started by them. They are not an agressive country but they will not hesitate to defend themselves. If they got a nuke, they would be highly unlikely to use it. Are they seeking one? We still are not certain. Am I worried that they might? No. Should we tell them they can't? I don't think so.

Iran is not the enemy we have often portrayed them as. After 9/11 they offered aid and also to assist with the hunt for Bin Laden. When we went into Afghanistan, they again offered to help. We said no. After Hurricane Katrina hit they offered 20 million barrels of oil in aid. Again- no. They are far more reasonable than the media and government make them sound.

If we are honest with people like Iran and listen to what they actually say, we can get more done. They don't trust us (understandably so).

On sanctions in general- they are 99% of the time failures. It does not encourage compliance but instead hardens opposition to what you want them to do. Look at Cuba. What has 50 years of sanctions accomplished there? yet they hurt your own companies and businesses who would like to deal with that country. Sanctions build walls- they don't solve problems. But it gives the government the ability to say they did something. They "sent a message". "We got tough on them- didn't we?"

NorthCarolinaLiberty
02-23-2015, 04:20 AM
Perhaps you can link to some of my threads on Israel. What are my comments on Israel having nukes? Heck- what are my comments on Israel?

Good luck finding anything.


Don't you work for a Jewish organization?

Zippyjuan
02-23-2015, 08:06 PM
I take it you could not find any of my posts on Israel. Sorry to burst your bubble. I don't work for any Jewish organization.

pcosmar
02-23-2015, 08:25 PM
I take it you could not find any of my posts on Israel. Sorry to burst your bubble.

You usually post in defense of the status quo.. and usually with a government source web site.

Your previous post was refreshing. But I would add to it. The religious leaders in Iran oppose any WMDs on moral grounds. (whether some in the government agree or not)
Iran does have Uranium,, and does want to enrich it for sale.. mostly to Russia. They want to improve their production. Not for weapons,, but for sales.

The US however seems intent on provoking Russia at every turn these days.

kcchiefs6465
02-23-2015, 08:41 PM
You usually post in defense of the status quo.. and usually with a government source web site.

Your previous post was refreshing. But I would add to it. The religious leaders in Iran oppose any WMDs on moral grounds. (whether some in the government agree or not)
Iran does have Uranium,, and does want to enrich it for sale.. mostly to Russia. They want to improve their production. Not for weapons,, but for sales.

The US however seems intent on provoking Russia at every turn these days.
Or simply for use in the medical industry.

What are they provably enriching uranium to? What is weapons grade?

Them selling enriched uranium is as much as the narrative as anything. The neoconservative position often is that it is not as much worried about Iran with weapons grade uranium as they are worried about who Iran may supply with as much.

I doubt Iran is much a significant source to Russia.

pcosmar
02-23-2015, 10:14 PM
I doubt Iran is much a significant source to Russia.

Why?
It is nearby.. and has huge uranium reserves.. (tenth largest in the world)
They already sell uranium to Russia who then refines it.

If they could refine it (more than they do already) it would increase their profits.

BV2
02-24-2015, 03:01 AM
Actor threatens to follow the script and leave the stage?