Iran’s Foreign Minister, Hossein Amir-Abdollahian, said his country is seeking economic guarantees from the US to revive a 2015 nuclear deal so as not to be "stung twice" the same way.
"We do not want to be stung twice from the same spot. In order to enjoy the full economic benefits of the JCPOA, the Americans must accept some commitments and guarantees," Amir-Abdollahian told state television in an interview on Thursday night, according to a report in the AFP news agency.
"We are now at a point where we have a text ready in front of us; we agree with all parties on 95% of its content," he said. "We are serious about reaching a good, strong and lasting agreement but we do not want an agreement at any price."
Iran scaled back its compliance with the 2015 deal, in response to former US President Donald Trump’s withdrawal from the agreement in May of 2018, but has held several rounds of indirect talks with the US on a return to the agreement.
An agreement was nearly reached before the talks stopped in March. US Special Envoy for Iran Rob Malley told lawmakers recently that the prospects for reaching a deal with Iran are “tenuous” at best.
Qatar hosted indirect talks last month between the United States and Iran in a bid to get the process back on track, but those discussions broke up after two days without any breakthrough.
"The Americans have not yet assured us that we can enjoy the full economic benefits of the JCPOA," Amir-Abdollahian stressed in his interview, saying Iran will continue its indirect negotiations with the US through the European Union.
France's Foreign Minister, Catherine Colonna, said last week there were only a few weeks left to revive the deal and it was up to Iran to decide whether to sign what had been negotiated.
"The window of opportunity will close in a few weeks. There will not be a better accord to the one which is on the table," she warned.
Later, when asked if the United States concurred with Colonna's view, a senior US official pointed to a previous comment by White House national security adviser Jake Sullivan to reporters that "we have not marked a date on the calendar."
