TEHRAN -- Chief negotiator Ali Bagheri Kani said on Sunday the Iranian side has not received any constructive initiative or proposal from the opposite side in the ongoing talks in Vienna to remove sanctions on the Islamic Republic.
Bagheri Kani told Press TV that the removal of the illegal and cruel U.S. sanctions and Iran’s nuclear activities are two main sticking points in the current talks over which there still remains a host of differences between the two sides.
Despite the situation, he said, Iran’s delegation has informed the opposite side of its views on differential issues through modifications and proposals.
“When it comes to these points of differences, we have so far received no proposal and initiative from the opposite side,” Bagheri Kani said.
The differences, he said, are clearly visible in the final draft proposed in the sixth round of talks in Vienna when his predecessor Abbas Araqchi represented Iran in the negotiations.
“The differences, especially on the nuclear issue, are numerous and varied.”
Bagheri Kani said during the past few days, many sessions have been held both at the expert level and among chief negotiators to discuss modifications, viewpoints, and proposals offered by the Iranian side about the draft drawn up in the sixth round of Vienna talks.
“These talks have been positive and moving forward,” he said.
On Saturday, Bagheri Kani said the general atmosphere was “very serious” and that he was optimistic a final agreement could be reached.
“The atmosphere in negotiations is very serious and this atmosphere has governed the talks since we arrived here ... but at the same time, there is mutual respect and the overall view is that both sides want to clinch an agreement,” he said in an interview with official broadcaster IRIB.
Iran and the five remaining signatories to the landmark 2015 nuclear agreement, officially known as the Joint Comprehensive Plan of Action (JCPOA), are holding talks on a host of issues and they have reached agreements on some of them, though a comprehensive agreement has not been reached yet on many issues.
“For example, when it comes to Iran’s nuclear activities, an agreement has been forged between the two sides on some of outstanding issues, but there are other issues in this area...which still remain to be agreed upon and negotiations on those issues will continue,” he said, without elaboration.
Asked whether the two sides could reach a deal, he said, “There are two sides to any negotiation and agreement, and certain conditions should exist on both sides for talks to progress ... and end in a result and an agreement.”
“I am optimistic about reaching an agreement, but given the unpleasant memory that our people have of the opposite side, we will certainly not take anything easy,” Bagheri Kani added.
The JCPOA was abandoned by former U.S. President Donald Trump in May 2018. Trump then targeted Iran’s economy with what he called a “maximum pressure” campaign, which failed to compel Iran to negotiate a “new deal”.
Iran and the five remaining parties to the JCPOA -- Germany, Britain, France, Russia and China -- began the talks in the Austrian capital in April with the aim of removing the sanctions after the U.S., under President Joe Biden, voiced its willingness to return to the agreement.
During the seventh round of the Vienna talks - the first under President Ebrahim Raisi - Iran presented two draft texts which address, separately, the removal of U.S. sanctions and Iran’s return to its nuclear commitments under the JCPOA. Tehran also said it was preparing a third draft text on the verification of the sanctions removal.
Prior to and in the midst of the fresh round of talks, American and European diplomats voiced strong pessimism about the prospects of the talks, claiming Iran was not serious.
On Friday, Bagheri reaffirmed Iran’s determination to reach a deal on the removal of sanctions, saying “dishonest reports” from outside the negotiating room will fail to have
 any impact on Tehran’s will.
“Dishonest reports from outside negotiating room won’t weaken our will to reach a deal securing our nation’s rights & interests,” he tweeted.
Russian ambassador to international organizations in Vienna, Mikhail Ulyanov, rejected claims by “some analysts and journalists” that the Vienna talks had hit a deadlock.
“To my surprise some analysts and journalists describe the situation at the #ViennaTalks as dramatic, ‘almost deadlock’. This is not the case in point.”
He added, “After the break, the negotiators returned to normal diplomatic business and maintain intensive dialogue. Atmosphere is positive,” he said of the gap which came after the Europeans took Iran’s draft proposals to their capitals for discussion.