An Iranian diplomat tasked with liaising with foreign policy experts told reporters Friday hes not very optimistic about upcoming nuclear talks, but did not rule out the prospect of a compromise on Irans 20% enrichment activities.Personally speaking, I am not optimistic, Mostafa Dolatyar, the head of the Iranian foreign ministry think tank IPIS, told reporters at the Iranian embassy in New Delhi on Friday,Reuters reported.
Theythe six powers that comprise the P5+1, the United States, United Kingdom, France, Germany, China and Russiahave made certain connections with purely technical issues and something purely political, Dolatyar continued. As far as this is the mentality from [the] 5+1definitely there is no end for this game.
Deputy nuclear negotiators from Iran and the P5+1 held a phone conversation Wednesday to initiate logistical planning for a new round of nuclear negotiations,Al-Monitor reported(December 12). Preparations for a new meeting have gotten underway as the six powers have beendebating how to update a proposal on curbing Irans higher 20% enrichment work, first presented to Iran at a meeting in Baghdad last May.
The package has the same bone structure, but with some slightly different tattoos, a senior US official was cited by theWashington PostFriday.
Our assessment is that it is possible that they are ready to make a deal, the official said. Certainly, the pressure is on.
Al-Monitor first reported in October thatIrans leadership had tapped Dolatyarto serve as a central point of contact for approaches from outside-government foreign NGOs and nonproliferation experts, in an effort to reduce mixed messages ahead of anticipated resumed nuclear negotiations.
Mostafa Dolatyar, a career Iranian diplomat who heads the Iranian foreign ministry think tank, the Institute for Political and International Studies (IPIS), was tapped by Irans leadership to coordinate contacts with American outside-government policy experts, including those with former senior US officials involved unofficially in relaying ideas for shaping a possible nuclear compromise,Al-Monitor wroteOctober 31.
The appointment is the result of a desire on the Iranian side for a more structured approach to dealing with America, Mark Fitzpatrick, an Iran nuclear expert at the Institute for International and Strategic Studies (IISS) in London,told Al-Monitorin October.
Ahead of a new meetingthe date is still unclear, international negotiators have been debating how to update a proposal that would curb Irans higher 20% enrichment work on a short time table, given the size of Irans accumulated stockpile of fissile material and the concern that the Iranian leadership may become more politically distracted and uncompromising as it heads into its presidential elections in June.
Dolatyar, speaking to reporters Friday, offered a rationale for Irans 20% enrichment activities, saying it needed the fuel for medical purposes, but did not rule out the possibility of a compromise.
One year ago we needed it [the 20% fuel] very much, we were ready to pay cash for it but now we now have it, Reuters cited him. Why should we close our installations and to buy from somewhere else? It is not logical.
You cannot take something as pre-decided, everything could be subject to negotiation, he said, according to the Reuters report. It depends on the framework of negotiations and the end game.
We hope that agreement with Iran can soon be reached on how to continue the talks and make concrete progress towards addressing international concerns and finding a diplomatic solution, the office of European Union foreign policy chiefCatherine Ashton said on December 12th.
By Al-Monitor
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