Analysts praised Washington’s ground-breaking interim deal with Iran to rein in its nuclear program in return for sanctions relief, but warned negotiations for a full agreement will prove even tougher.
“The interim deal is a strong one, which achieves a broader array of constraints and verification on Iran’s nuclear program than ever previously contemplated,” said Suzanne Maloney, an Iran expert with the Brookings Institution.
She stressed that the six-month accord tied Tehran “to an ongoing diplomatic process whose primary rewards remain deferred until a far more ambitious agreement can be achieved.”
After almost a decade of stalemate in negotiations between Iran and the so-called P5+1 group – Britain, China, France, Germany, Russia and the United States – things have moved at breakneck speed since Iran’s President Hassan Rouhani took office in August and was hailed by some as a moderate.
Three rounds of negotiations since September led to a pre-dawn deal in Geneva.
“I think this has been a hard fought, effective and meaningful negotiation and has provided the kind of assurances that the negotiators need to have a legitimate, comprehensive discussion with Iran about the entirety of its nuclear program,” said Joel Rubin, director of policy for foundation the Ploughshares Fund.
The deal had put “time back on the clock” as the world tries to stop Iran getting to a so-called breakout capability where it could deploy a nuclear weapon, Rubin said, adding that Tehran’s acceptance of daily inspections by UN inspectors of its Natanz and Fordo plants was “unprecedented” as was an accord to stop work on its heavy water reactor at Arak.
“It’s quite remarkable. If you had told me a few months ago that Iran would agree through diplomacy to eliminate its 20 percent stockpile, to stop construction and any progress of Arak, to allow for intrusive and daily monitoring, I would tell you that that is an achievement for our security,” Rubin told AFP.
But there was also a note of caution that the next round of negotiations towards a fully comprehensive deal could prove even tougher.
