Willie R. Tubbs, FISM News
Friday, in a move most believe was meant to reinvigorate talks, the Biden Administration officially lifted sanctions that had previously prevented some U.S. allies from working with Iran on nuclear power plant projects.
While the word “nuclear” is involved, the sanctions were not related to weaponry. Rather, this sanction will allow other countries to engage with Iran on civil projects. These sanctions had been imposed by then-President Donald Trump in 2019 and 2020.
Both Reuters and CNN reported on the development, but presented conflicting accounts.
Reuters uncovered that Secretary of State Antony Blinken had sent a report to Congress indicating the relaxation of these sanctions was meant to nudge Iran toward reestablishing the Joint Comprehensive Plan of Action, a now mostly toothless agreement the U.S. left in 2018.
CNN cited an unnamed senior state official who said the lifting of sanctions was not “a signal that we are about to reach an understanding on a mutual return to full implementation of the (JCPOA).”
“We are issuing the waiver now for a simple reason: it will enable some of our international partners to have more detailed technical discussions to enable cooperation that we view as being in our non-proliferation interests,” the official told CNN.
The official insisted that even without a JCPOA deal, the waiver could still foster nuclear non-proliferation.
President Joe Biden ran on a promise of restoring the JCPOA, which was a point of pride for Biden and President Barrack Obama in 2015.
However, U.S. efforts to bring that promise to fruition have been marred by false starts, brick walls, and a lack of cohesion on the American side.
In late January, three State Department officials left negotiations because they felt President Biden’s stance on Iran was too weak. This move came only days after Republicans in Congress urged the President to “immediately withdraw” from the talks.