French Envoy: Quick Fix to Save Iran Nuclear Deal Unlikely

Negotiations are at a dead end, officials say

The arrival of EU diplomats to try to take one last stab at saving the nuclear deal with Iran seems to be getting off to a bad start, with French diplomats telling reporters they believe its unlikely to come up with a quick fix.

“Negotiations are at a dead end,” one of the French sources told reporters. Indications are that negotiations were virtually completed months ago, and then a couple of months of nothing has everyone giving up.

EU officials are still trying, and Qatar’s Emir is also visiting Tehran to try to see if there’s anything to be done to save the deal. In the end, the shape of the deal is pretty clear, and its just a matter of the US and Iran either wanting to finalize it, or not.

The issue of the IRGC being on a US terror blacklist was one of the last unresolved matters, with the US rejecting a deal to remove them, and then seemingly deciding that the talks were over.

Those who were counting on the deal are scrambling now. The deal was almost certain to include a prisoner exchange, and the families who wanted their relatives back are pushing for a deal to resolve the matter, and bring everyone home, before the deal falls apart. The concern is that if the negotiations end, it will just prolong everything else.

Author: Jason Ditz

Jason Ditz is Senior Editor for Antiwar.com. He has 20 years of experience in foreign policy research and his work has appeared in The American Conservative, Responsible Statecraft, Forbes, Toronto Star, Minneapolis Star-Tribune, Providence Journal, Washington Times, and the Detroit Free Press.