Biden: Nuclear Negotiations with Iran Still Worth Pursuing

Joe Biden, the Vice President of the United States, stated on Saturday, December 6, that the chances of reaching a nuclear agreement are less than 50 percent, but the negotiations are still worth pursuing. According to Reuters, Biden, speaking at the Brookings Institution, rejected the escalation of sanctions against Tehran. According to AFP, Biden said that a diplomatic solution that imposes significant and verifiable restrictions on Iran's nuclear program is the best opportunity to assure the U.S., Israel, and the entire Middle East that Iran will not be equipped with nuclear weapons. Biden emphasized that efforts to reach a nuclear agreement with Tehran will not jeopardize Israel's security. He added that we will not allow Iran to acquire nuclear weapons. Philip Hammond, the British Foreign Secretary, also warned on Saturday, December 6, at the 10th Manama Security Conference, organized by the International Institute for Strategic Studies in collaboration with the Bahraini Foreign Ministry, against granting 'unreasonable concessions' to Iran to resolve the Islamic Republic's nuclear dispute. Two weeks ago, Iran and the U.S., Britain, France, China, Russia, and Germany, the P5+1 group, agreed in their negotiations in Vienna to extend nuclear talks for another seven months after a week of intensive discussions. The aim of extending these negotiations is to achieve a comprehensive agreement to finally resolve Iran's nuclear file and to lift foreign sanctions against the Islamic Republic. Barack Obama, the President of the United States, also stated last week that Washington will continue to strive for a nuclear agreement with Iran in the coming months, but it is still unclear whether Iran will take advantage of the opportunity for negotiations. Ayatollah Ali Khamenei, the leader of the Islamic Republic, on Thursday, December 5, while announcing his non-opposition to the extension of nuclear negotiations between Iran and the P5+1 countries and Iran's readiness to accept 'fair and reasonable arrangements,' remarked that if these negotiations do not yield results, 'the one who will suffer the most is the U.S., not Iran.' In this context, IRNA reported that Iran's refusal to test new centrifuges was denied, and the Bahraini Foreign Minister stated that cooperation with Iran is essential for regional security. Britain emphasized that unreasonable concessions were not granted to Iran to achieve a nuclear agreement.