Baku, Azerbaijan, Jan. 30
By Umid Niayesh, Saeed Isayev - Trend:
It is clear that there are people both in Iran and the U.S., that are skeptical of an agreement on Iran's nuclear program, U.S. State Department's Persian-speaking spokesman Alan Eyre told Trend on Jan. 30.
The official was commenting on certain bodies that opposed the nuclear deal in Geneva, between Iran and the P5+1 group.
It should be noted that Iran and the P5+1 reached a nuclear agreement on Nov. 24. Iran has agreed to curb some of its nuclear activities for six months in return for sanctions relief. Iran and the P5+1 group agreed to implement the agreement starting January 20, 2014.
Under the agreement, six major powers agreed to give Iran access to $4.2 billion in revenues blocked overseas if it carries out the deal, which offers sanctions relief in exchange for steps to curb the Iranian nuclear program.
Some members of the U.S. congress proposed a bill for new sanctions on Iran, however U.S. President Barack Obama said he would veto the bill. Alan Eyre says there will be no additional sanctions on Iran, if the country sticks to the agreement.
"The U.S. Constitution respects the principle of separation and independence of powers in America, so the Geneva agreement reads that: the U.S. government, within the authority of the president and the Congress will not impose new sanctions against Iran," Eyre said.
As for Iran, Eyre said that the Islamic Republic should ratify and implement additional protocol on the nuclear program within the authorities of the Iranian president and the parliament as well.
"In other words, both sides indirectly mention the separation of their countries' executive and legislative powers," Eyre said.
The official went on to add that there are no differences in viewpoints within the administration of the U.S.president about the goal.
"The Obama administration believes that if such a trend continues, it will be able to offer a powerful argument to the Congress that now is not the time to impose new sanctions on Iran," Eyre noted.
He went on to say that there are still serious differences between the two sides (Iran and the U.S.), and the negotiations will be complicated.
"However, both parties have shown seriousness, good faith and mutual respect," he said. "Creating more confidence needs more time, and both sides should continue moving forward," Eyre noted.
"The administration of the U.S. president is obligated to use dynamic diplomacy to find a peaceful solution to Iran's nuclear program and prevent it from making a nuclear weapon," Eyre said. "The long-term agreement which is mentioned in the Joint Plan of Action will help to realize this goal."
Eyre noted that the U.S. will enter the new negotiations with Iran, carefully eyeing the future challenges.
"As it is mentioned in the Joint Plan of Action, we have an unprecedented opportunity to peacefully resolve this serious national security concern," the official noted. "This is our goal, and challenge too."
Eyre also spoke about Iranian president Hassan Rouhani's speech at the Davos Economic Forum on Jan. 23.
"We've listened to president Rouhani's speech carefully. The key point is that Iran-U.S. relations will need time to improve. The global community expects and hopes that not only Iranian leaders' words change, but the administration would take some new and constructive approaches as well," Eyre said.
Eyre went on to add that good relations can be developed on values and common interests, adding that the global community is searching for a peaceful solution to Iran's nuclear program, based on common interests and dynamic diplomacy.
"We're very hopeful that the process between Iran and the P5+1 will continue for reaching a comprehensive agreement on the nuclear issue," he said, adding that the U.S. has taken important steps for implementing the Geneva deal.
"It should be recalled that Iran's unsparing support for Syria's brutal and ruthless regime, and also refusing to support the core element of the "Geneva 1" framework, indicates that the change in words is not sufficient, and the world expects Iran to take constructive actions towards establishing peace and stability," Eyre underscored.
The official noted that the U.S. has shown its readiness to use powerful and dynamic diplomacy to resolve Iran's nuclear issue peacefully.
Answering the question about whether the U.S. would be willing to send its delegation to Iran, if invited, Eyre said that making estimates about the possible forms of diplomacy is not constructive.
The U.S. and its Western allies suspect Iran of developing a nuclear weapon - something that Iran denies. The Islamic Republic has on numerous occasions stated that it does not seek to develop nuclear weapons, using nuclear energy for medical researches instead.
Edited by C.N.