Blinken: We Are Not in a Position to Discuss a Nuclear Agreement with Iran

Antony Blinken, the U.S. Secretary of State, responded on Sunday to a question about reviving the nuclear agreement with Iran, stating that U.S. officials are currently not discussing an agreement with Iran. In an interview on CNN's "Fareed Zakaria GPS," Blinken described the Trump administration's withdrawal from the 2015 nuclear deal with Iran as a "terrible mistake." He said, "Since we left the agreement and when we tried to return to it, developments and changes have occurred. But essentially, what we tried to do was to return to the existing agreement with some minor adjustments. He continued, "The agreement was on the table. Iran either could not or did not want to say yes. We are not going to make just any agreement; it must meet our security objectives. It must serve our interests." The U.S. Secretary of State noted Washington's efforts to revive the nuclear agreement, stating, "They could not or did not want to do this. We are now in a position where we are not discussing the nuclear agreement." Blinken emphasized that the Biden administration wants Iran to take steps towards de-escalation, and then "perhaps an environment will be created where we can return to discussions about their nuclear program." He also mentioned that the United States is taking a series of actions to push back against Iran to ensure that there is strong deterrence against Iran and appropriate pressure is applied, and "then we will see if an opportunity arises again to work on the nuclear agreement." The U.S. Secretary of State reiterated the diplomatic solution in dealing with Iran but added that "this does not mean that other options do not exist, and if necessary, we will resort to them." Jake Sullivan, the White House National Security Advisor, also stated on Sunday that "Washington continues to work for the release of four American prisoners in Iran," adding, "In relation to the nuclear program, we are not close to any agreement." Ali Akbar Salehi called for comprehensive negotiations between the Islamic Republic and the United States. A bipartisan proposal was presented in the U.S. Senate to intensify sanctions against the Islamic Republic. Sullivan emphasized that we are not close to the JCPOA; Kanaani stated that the path for negotiations "remains open." The UN Deputy Secretary-General noted that the JCPOA is effectively stalled, and the only viable option is "diplomacy."