UN watchdog: US return to Iran nuclear deal still possible

A path for the U.S. to return to the 2015 nuclear deal with Iran exists, but both sides need to be willing to negotiate, the head of the United Nations nuclear monitoring agency reportedly told European lawmakers on Tuesday.

International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) Director General Rafael Grossi made his remarks during a video appearance before three European Parliament committees, multiple news outlets reported. 

President Biden has stated his intention of returning the U.S. to the international nuclear agreement with Tehran, formally called the Joint Comprehensive Plan of Action, from which former President Trump withdrew in 2018. 

But the U.S. and Iran are in a stalemate over how to move forward, with Washington insisting Tehran reverse its progress on uranium enrichment back to the levels identified in the nuclear deal and Iran pushing the U.S. to first relieve sanctions. 

Grossi said he has been talking to both sides in his agency’s “impartial neutral role” over avenues to return to the nuclear deal, The Associated Press reported, saying “It is difficult, but not impossible.” 

He said “it takes two to tango,” when asked about Iran’s insistence that the U.S. take the first step in relieving sanctions.  

Grossi further warned of Iran’s advancement on nuclear issues since it started breaching the terms of the agreement, saying the Islamic Republic of Iran has accumulated a lot of nuclear material and new capacities and used the time for “honing their skills in these areas.” 

“Even if you had a magic wand or the hand of God and said we go back tomorrow, there will be a lot of housekeeping,” he said, according to the AP. 

Iran in 2019 started breaching the terms of the nuclear deal, meant to prevent it from having the capacity to build a nuclear weapon, in response to the maximum pressure campaign of sanctions imposed by the Trump administration.   

Secretary of State Antony Blinken assured lawmakers last week that the U.S. would make no concessions to get a meeting with Iran. The secretary also answered in the affirmative when asked that the U.S. would only give sanctions relief if Iran is verifiably in full compliance with the agreement or is on a negotiated path to full compliance.