(Bloomberg) -- The US is no closer to wrapping up negotiations on re-entering a 2015 nuclear accord with Iran after a week of trading responses to a European Union proposal, a person familiar with the matter said, dimming prospects that the talks will end anytime soon.
Iran's response to the European Union draft -- which the State Department called “not constructive” on Thursday -- makes it impossible for the US to close the deal, said the person, who asked not to be identified discussing internal deliberations.
With all those disagreements, it's possible that the two sides won't conclude a deal until after the US midterm elections in November, said Ali Vaez, director of the Iran Project at the Washington-based International Crisis Group.
“The negotiations in the past few weeks could be summarized as one step forward, one step back,” Vaez said. “All of a sudden, the question of safeguards has reared its head again, in addition to disagreements over economic guarantees.”
Stumbling Blocks
Neither the US, the European Union nor Iran have detailed the latest stumbling blocks to re-entering the Joint Comprehensive Plan of Action, which former President Donald Trump abandoned in 2018. But Iran has insisted publicly that international atomic inspectors wrap up a probe of undeclared nuclear sites before signing a deal. The US says that investigation must proceed unimpeded.
The Sticky Issues Holding Up a New Iran Nuclear Deal: QuickTake
The goal of the negotiations is to come up with a deal that reinstates limits on Tehran's rapidly advancing nuclear program in exchange for lifting US sanctions on Iran's economy.
At stake are millions of barrels of Iranian oil that could come back on the market at a time when leaders in Europe and the US are grappling with inflation and the Ukraine war threatens to push energy prices even higher.
Economic Guarantees
Along with its demand that atomic inspectors end their safeguards probe, Iran wants economic guarantees if a future US government quits the deal again. A previous exchange of comments on the EU proposal had spurred optimism, as Washington said Tehran had dropped “extraneous demands.”
The talks have spurred hopes in some countries that a deal could help rein in high energy prices that have fueled inflation. At the same time, the Biden administration has sent signals that it will take a tough stance on Iran even as it pursues a restored agreement, which is opposed by Republicans and some Democrats in Congress.
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