ISLAMABAD (Dispatches) -- A leading Pakistani newspaper has warned of Zionist conspiracies as the remaining signatories of the 2015 Iran nuclear deal prepare to resume talks, calling on U.S. President Joe Biden to show Tehran that Washington is negotiating in good faith to restore the agreement.
Dawn, an English-language newspaper printed in Karachi, said in an editorial that efforts to revive the Joint Comprehensive Plan of Action are in a delicate phase.
According to the paper, a wide gulf still remains between Iran and the U.S. and its European allies over the need for Washington remove its sanctions on the Islamic Republic in order to revive the deal.
Tehran, it said, wants the removal of all sanctions, as well as guarantees that the US will not quit the deal again. After all, the Iranians are wary that Washington will once again walk away from the agreement as it did during Donald Trump’s watch, it added.
“Yet the signals from the Western bloc do not appear to be too positive. Moreover, reckless talk from Israel threatens to scuttle all chances of a settlement,” Dawn said.
The newspaper said that such irresponsible statements risk permanently torpedoing the deal and adding to the volatility in the Middle East.
“If President Biden is serious about reviving the deal, his administration must show the Iranians that they are negotiating in good faith,” Dawn said.
The most important step in this direction would be lifting the sanctions, it added.
The Biden administration, the paper said, needs to show statesmanship and introduce confidence-building measures before the nuclear talks get underway.
“Equally, it must prevent Israel from spoiling the atmosphere. A clear message should be sent to Tel Aviv that the world community will not tolerate any misadventures that can scuttle the deal, and risk setting the Middle East alight,” said the editorial.