The 19th meeting of the JCPOA began a few minutes ago in Vienna with the participation of the Deputy Foreign Ministers and Political Directors of the Foreign Ministers of Iran, Germany, France, Britain, Russia, China, and Enrique Mora on behalf of Joseph Borrell.
Technical consultations in the two areas of lifting sanctions and nuclear issues are among the most important topics of the 18th meeting of the Joint Commission.
The meeting will be chaired by senior Iranian negotiator Abbas Araqchi, deputy foreign minister for political affairs, and Enrique Mora, the deputy of European Union foreign policy chief Josep Borrell.
Araqchi is accompanied by officials from Iran’s Central Bank, the Atomic Energy Organization of Iran, and the country’s Ministry of Petroleum.
Ahead of the talks, Iran’s Foreign Ministry reaffirmed in a statement that no representatives from the US are to attend the nuclear talks in Vienna, and that the Iranian delegation’s agenda does not feature any direct or indirect negotiations with Americans either.
“No representatives from the US are to attend the Joint Commission’s gathering or expert-level talks in Vienna,” the Ministry said in a statement, adding, “No direct or indirect negotiation is on the agenda of the Iranian delegation [either].”
The Vienna negotiations take place within the “in-person” and expert-level formats. The Iranian team sat down with the Chinese delegation on Monday, and met with delegations from Russia and the European Union— that coordinated the talks leading to the JCPOA’s conclusion — on Tuesday morning.
HJ/