Iran and 1+5 Expert Meeting in Geneva for JCPOA Implementation

Reports indicate that the first day of the expert meeting between Iran and the 1+5 group for the "final coordination for the implementation day of the JCPOA" was held on Friday, January 8, in Geneva. According to IRNA, Hamid Baidi Nejad, the Director General for Political Affairs at the Foreign Ministry, is leading the Iranian expert team in this two-day meeting. The report states that the implementation day of Iran's nuclear agreement, or the Joint Comprehensive Plan of Action (JCPOA), will be officially announced in a joint statement by Mohammad Javad Zarif, Iran's Foreign Minister, and Federica Mogherini, the EU's foreign policy chief. Previously, Mohammad Javad Zarif had announced in a joint press conference with Ibrahim al-Jaafari, Iraq's Foreign Minister, about a meeting between Iranian negotiators and representatives of the 1+5 group for "final coordination." Meanwhile, John Kerry, the U.S. Secretary of State, stated on Thursday that if things go well, the Iranian nuclear agreement is likely to be implemented in a few days. The nuclear agreement between Iran and six world powers was reached on July 14 this year in Vienna, under which Tehran agreed to halt many of its nuclear activities in exchange for the lifting of sanctions by the U.S., the EU, and the UN against Tehran. However, the Foreign Affairs Committee of the U.S. House of Representatives, controlled by Republicans, approved a draft of the "Iran Terror Finance Transparency Act" on Thursday, January 7, which grants Congress more oversight powers over the Vienna nuclear agreement. According to the approved plan, the removal of certain individuals or entities from the sanctions list prepared by the Treasury Department will be conditional on a guarantee from the President, who must inform Congress that these individuals and entities are not involved in Iran's missile programs or terrorist activities. The Chairman of the National Security and Foreign Policy Commission of the Iranian Parliament reacted to this plan on Friday, accusing the U.S. Congress of seeking to "disrupt" the Vienna nuclear agreement. According to the House of Representatives' news agency, Aladdin Boroujerdi emphasized that this plan is "certainly" contrary to the Vienna nuclear agreement and will "harm" this agreement. Previously, some Iranian officials had deemed the travel restrictions to the U.S., the possibility of new U.S. sanctions against Iran, and the potential seizure of the Central Bank of Iran's assets in New York as "violations" of the Vienna nuclear agreement. Ayatollah Ali Khamenei, the Supreme Leader of the Islamic Republic, stated in a letter to Hassan Rouhani, the President of Iran, regarding the Vienna nuclear agreement that "throughout the eight-year period," the imposition of any sanctions "at any level and for any reason" by the negotiating countries will be considered a violation of the nuclear agreement, and the government is obliged to halt the implementation of this agreement.