The seventh round of talks on the nuclear deal with Iran in Vienna will resume next week after the participants carry out consultations in their respective capitals, Mikhail Ulyanov, Russia's permanent representative to international organisations in Vienna, said on Saturday, Sputnik reported.
"The round is not completed. The seventh round will continue. The participants simply decided to take a technical break, in particular, for consultations in their capitals, to think over how to form further work", Ulyanov told reporters.
The Russian official added that when the talks resume next week, the acuteness of the situation will hopefully decrease.
Ulyanov noted that Tehran's desire to avoid a collapse of the JCPOA is justified and reasonable, so, if Iran needs additional guarantees, it may be discussed.
"The requirement of the Iranians for guarantees is absolutely clear and justified. There must be a certainty that the malicious experiment which was done under [ex-US President] Donald Trump with the maximum pressure policy, additional sanctions, will not be repeated. All this must be subject to discussions", Ulyanov told reporters.
"We can put a positive spin on the joint statement by the US, UK, German, and French leaders on 30 October, where a sentence by [US] President Joe Biden is included about the readiness of the US to respect the restored nuclear deal as long as Iran will do it. Maybe this is an element of a political guarantee. It is just needed to write it down as part of the negotiation process", Ulyanov said.
He also mentioned the Iranian offer to change the draft document, which caused a sharp reaction by nations in the West.
"As I understand, our Western partners were under a strong impression that the Iranian side proposed to change substantially, make radical amendments to the draft nuclear document, which was agreed during the six previous rounds. It seemed to them [the Western partners] that this approach is too radical, that is why such a sharp reaction appeared", Ulyanov told reporters.
The Russian official additionally noted that there is a rule at the nuclear talks in Vienna, that goes as follows: "Nothing is agreed until everything is agreed".
"Meaning that amendments, changes in position are always possible. But it is desirable that these amendments are calibrated and do not turn into an obstacle in the path to progress. Therefore, we are not dramatizing the situation", the diplomat added.
On Monday, another round of talks with Iran on the Joint Comprehensive Plan of Action (JCPOA) began in the Austrian capital. The issue of lifting the US sanctions from Iran was the main topic of discussion.
ZZ/SPUTNIK