On Monday, Iran’s Foreign Ministry Spokesperson Saeed Khatibzadeh held a press conference where he made remarks on the latest developments surrounding the 2015 nuclear deal negotiations.
Touching upon the ongoing negotiations in Vienna to revive the 2015 nuclear deal, Khatibzadeh said that “significant progress” had been made in talks. Yet, the spokesperson did not disclose any further information regarding the nature of the progress in the talks.
Speaking at the press conference, Khatibzadeh noted that “nothing is agreed until everything is agreed,” adding that “the remaining issues are the hardest.”
The Iranian diplomat also reiterated his country’s stance insisting on lifting all sanctions that contradict the nuclear deal.
Meanwhile, Iran’s Secretary-General of the Supreme National Security Council, Ali Shamkhani, came together with European parties in Vienna regarding the Vienna talks. According to the Iranian Foreign Ministry spokesperson, Shamkhani directly reports to Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei.
Shamkhani stated that the negotiations would proceed while rejecting any direct contact with the US due to that Washington would not be the source of “any breakthroughs.”
On the Saudi-Iranian talks, Khatibzadeh stated that his country is ready to come together with neighboring countries. According to his statement, the success of the talks with Saudi Arabia is contingent on Riyadh’s genuine willingness to do so.
Despite a “lack of substantive progress” in past rounds, Saudi Arabia’s foreign minister stated at the Munich Security Conference on Saturday that the Kingdom is attempting to organize a fifth session of direct talks with Iran.
Saudi Arabia severed ties with Iran in 2016 when demonstrators stormed its embassy in Tehran following Riyadh’s killing of a Shia religious leader. The two regional arch-rivals held four rounds of talks through Iraqi mediatory to normalize ties last year.
