WASHINGTON — Negotiators from Iran and six world powers resume talks in Vienna this week for the first time since the reaching of a framework deal April 2 that has set off debate and some confusion over seemingly conflicting interpretations about the provisional accord.
US and Iran officials have expressed confidence that the understandings reached to date are solid, even as they acknowledge the parties choose to present them differently given domestic political considerations. They also stress there are still a couple issues yet to be resolved, including the timetable for lifting sanctions, and access and procedures for monitoring aspects of Iran’s program under a final deal.
“How sanctions are lessened, how we snap back sanctions if there’s a violation, there are a lot of different mechanisms and ways to do that,” President Barack Obama told journalists at the White House April 18. “Part of John [Kerry’s] job and part of the Iranian negotiators’ job … is to sometimes find formulas that get to our main concerns while allowing the other side to make a presentation to their body politic that is more acceptable.”
Read more here
This article was written by Laura Rozen for Al-Monitor on April 20, 2015. Laura Rozen reports on foreign policy from Washington, DC, for Al-Monitor's Back Channel. She has written for Yahoo! News, Politico and Foreign Policy.