US invites Iran to ‘serious’ nuclear talks

US Deputy Secretary of State Wendy Sherman speaks on the situation in Afghanistan at the State Department in Washington, DC, on August 18, 2021. - The US is pressing the Taliban to let Afghans flee through the US-controlled airport after violations of their promises, Sherman said Wednesday. "We have seen reports that the Taliban, contrary to their public statements and their commitments to our government, are blocking Afghans who wish to leave the country from reaching the airport," Sherman told reporters. (Photo by Andrew Harnik / POOL / AFP) (Photo by ANDREW HARNIK/POOL/AFP via Getty Images)

In an interview with the Al-Jazeera news channel, Sherman claimed, “we support the restart of the Vienna Talks and invite Iran to negotiate seriously.”

So far, six rounds of negotiations have been conducted in Vienna between the United States and other parties to revive the Joint Comprehensive Plan of Action (JCPOA). The sides say tangible progress has been made in the talks, but some differences remain.

One area of disagreement in the negotiations is the US insistence on maintaining some of the sanctions the Donald Trump administration imposed on Iran after leaving the agreement. In addition, the Joe Biden administration has stated that it cannot guarantee that the next US administration will not withdraw from the JCPOA again.

The Islamic Republic of Iran has emphasized that given that the United States is the side that violated the agreement, it is Washington that must return to the deal with the lifting of sanctions and that the implementation of US commitments must be verified. Tehran, of course, has emphasized that it is not insistent or in a hurry to return the United States to the deal.