Reliable sources tell EA of a development in the Vienna nuclear talks: just over 72 hours before a deadline for agreement, Iran is considering a new proposal from the 5+1 Powers.
The proposal does not set out a comprehensive agreement, but offers advance in specific areas which will support an extension of the negotiations until March.
The sources do not give details of the proposal, although they say the Iranians are “hopeful” about the terms.
See also Analysis: 9 Questions and Answers About the Vienna Nuclear Talks
Initially, Iranian Foreign Minister Mohammad Javad Zarif said he would return to Iran for consultations with the Supreme Leader and President Rouhani; however, he decided to stay in Vienna where he has had talks this afternoon with French Foreign Minister Laurent Fabius and British Foreign Secretary Philip Hammond.
After those discussions, Fabius and Hammond will go to Paris to confer further with US Secretary of State John Kerry.
In Iran, public figures have supported the sign of hope in the new proposal. Speaker of Parliament Ali Larijani said, before a trip to Djibouti in eastern Africa:
There are grounds for reaching an agreement on the general issues in the negotiations….Both sides were very serious in the negotiations and if we review the frameworks which have been set so far, we can see presence of grounds for reaching an agreement. In the current circumstances, there are opportunities for agreements provided that a logical, lawful and a fair approach is conducted.
Hard-line clerics have supported the possibility of an advance while trying to keep the Rouhani Government from benefiting. Ayatollah Alamalhoda, the Friday Prayer Leader in Mashhad, said:
Today, all eyes are on the negotiations taking place in Vienna and awaiting the results. If the negotiators achieve a desired and good results i.e. if negotiations are successful, then certain political groups have no right to claim the credit for this success and use that to revive their political life.
And Ayatollah Jannati cautioned in Tehran Friday Prayers, “What I can say about negotiations is that you have to be careful and not accept humiliation.”
