SUMMARY: After a six-month break, formal talks between Iran and the 5+1 Powers over Tehran’s nuclear program resume today in Geneva.
On Monday, officials of the 5+1 (US, Britain, France, China, Russia, and Germany) met with Iranian counterparts, while Iranian Foreign Minister Mohammad Javad Zarif and the European Union’s foreign policy head Catherine Ashton (pictured), the lead negotiator for the 5+1, had a working dinner.

Iran has said it will table renewed proposals today. They are likely to include calls for the 5+1 to recognize Tehran’s right to enrich uranium and for the US and European powers to lift sanctions.

In return, Iran may offer to suspend its enrichment of 20% uranium, limiting its programme to 5% stock, provided it has a guaranteed supply of the higher-level fuel for its Tehran Research Reactor.

The US, which insisted this spring on a full cessation of Iran’s 20% program before any significant easing of sanctions, has not indicated how it would respond to the Iranian proposals.

A “senior Obama administration official” was cautious in a briefing to reporters on Monday night:

We are ready to listen to [the Iranian presentation], and to go to work if it is substantive and concrete.

At the same time, we go into these meetings clear-eyed about the fact that we have very, very difficult work to do….No one should expect a breakthrough overnight. These issues are too complicated. And as the President said, the history of mistrust is very deep.



US Warns “While We Negotiate, We Will Keep Up Economic Pressure”
Another extract from the Monday night briefing by a “senior Obama Administration official”, declaring that Washington will maintain a firm line as it listens to Iranian proposals….

While we negotiate we will keep up the economic pressure on Iran. Indeed…We believe that that pressure, which is a result of Iran’s own choices, has gotten us in large measure where we are today. And the [5+1 Powers] and the international community writ large remains united in acting in that regard.

The official refused to answer a question as to whether the US would accept an Iranian offer to suspend 20% uranium enrichment, limiting the process to 5% stock.

Indeed, the official refused to consider whether the US would even acknowledge Iran’s right to enrichment.
Rouhani Government “Shortfall in Subsidy Budget of Billions of Dollars”
Mohammad Bagher Nobakht, the deputy head of budgets and planning for the Rohani Governmentm says the budget for paying family subsidies faces a shortfall of trillions of Rials — billions of dollars.

The opposition site Radio Zamaneh claims the deficit could be 700 to 800 trillion rials ($28 billion to $32 billion).

Nobakht said the Government is looking at stopping payments to families in the top three income brackets.
Supreme Leader’s Military Advisor “Americans Cannot Be Trusted”
The Supreme Leader’s senior military advisor, Yahya Rahim Safavi, cautioned on the eve of the nuclear talks, “The Americans didn’t make any concessions to Iran and for this and other reasons, the Americans cannot be trusted.”

Rahim Safavi claimed, “George W. Bush has said in his diary book that they wanted to attack Iran after the wars in Afghanistan and Iraq, but their military forces opposed it. This means that they had hatched plots against Iran, but the US has failed to succeed in the attainment of its strategic goals.”

By Ea World View

 

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