White House National Security Adviser Jake Sullivan raised the idea a few weeks ago, during a conversation with his counterpart in Prime Minister Eyal Hulta’s office, that the United States and other powers would reach an “interim agreement” with Iran aimed at freezing high-level uranium enrichment and buying more time for negotiations. On the return to the nuclear agreement from 2015 – said three Israeli and American sources involved in the details. Israel has expressed reservations about the idea.
The idea put forward by President Biden’s National Security Adviser to his Israeli counterpart was only preliminary and did not at that stage represent a change in American policy. The United States still insists that any agreement with Iran must include full implementation of the 2015 nuclear deal. But ahead of the resumption of nuclear talks in Vienna on November 29, the idea that the Americans flooded with Israel gives a glimpse into part of the Biden administration’s thinking on the issue.
Two U.S. officials involved in the matter said the idea of an “interim agreement” came up in a conversation between Sullivan and Hulata as part of a “brainstorm.” According to them, Biden’s national security adviser only presented to his Israeli counterpart an idea originally raised by one of the United States’ allies in Europe involved in talks with Iran and that it was not an American idea.
According to US sources, the rationale behind the idea of reaching an “interim agreement” is that Iran’s nuclear program has made particularly dramatic progress in terms of uranium enrichment to 60%. The Iranians are today in a situation where they are very close to enriching uranium to a level of 90% from which nuclear weapons can be produced.
U.S. officials said the idea was that in exchange for freezing parts of the Iranian nuclear program, such as enriching uranium to 60 percent, the United States and its allies would thaw Iranian funds frozen in the West or allow Iran to purchase humanitarian goods it could not purchase today because of sanctions.
Hulta told Sullivan that he did not think it was a good idea and stressed that Israel feared that an interim agreement would eventually become a permanent agreement without dismantling the infrastructure of the Iranian nuclear program and without addressing Iran’s enriched uranium reserves, Israeli officials said. Hulta reiterated Israel’s position against the interim agreement also in a meeting with US envoy on Iran Rob Mali who visited Israel this week.
In a meeting with envoy Mali as well as another conversation with Sullivan yesterday, the Israeli National Security Adviser stressed that the United States and European powers must push for a condemnation decision against Iran during the forthcoming meeting of the International Atomic Energy Agency’s Board meeting in Vienna on November 24 – just five days before The date for resuming nuclear talks. Hulta stressed that such a move is important right now to make it clear to the Iranians that there is a price to pay for the steps they are taking in their nuclear program and the restrictions they are imposing on UN inspectors.
During Mali’s visit to Israel, he heard from both Foreign Minister Lapid and Defense Minister Ganz that if the United States wants Iran to return to the 2015 nuclear deal it must step up pressure on it and attach to it a threat of military action. Without these two measures, the Iranians would not return to the agreement, Lapid and Gantz told the American envoy.
Mali made it clear that the Biden administration also believes that pressure will be needed on Iran to bring it back to the nuclear deal, but the main difference between the United States and Israel is the timing of such moves. The American approach is to arrive at the upcoming round of talks in Vienna with good will and see what the Iranians will offer. The Americans believe that if the Iranians present extreme and unrealistic positions they will be able to unite all the powers including Russia and China behind a move to increase pressure on Iran.
Next Monday, International Atomic Energy Agency Director General Rafael Grossi will visit Tehran to discuss a long list of concerns the agency has about limiting the activities of UN inspectors in the country. Two days after the visit, the Board of Governors of the Agency will convene in Vienna. A report released by the International Atomic Energy Agency ahead of the meeting of the Council of Governors said that Iran had so far managed to accumulate 17.7 kg of enriched uranium to 60% – an increase of 8 kg since August.
.