JCPOA Joint Commission convenes as fifth round of nuclear talks end without agreement

The meeting was set to be held at end of the fifth round of nuclear talks which are aimed to revive the 2015 nuclear deal, officially known as the Joint Comprehensive Plan of Action (JCPOA).

The European Union said in a statement on Wednesday that the Joint Commission will hold a meeting late on Wednesday night. “The Joint Commission of the Joint Comprehensive Plan of Action (JCPOA) will resume this Wednesday 2 June, in Vienna. The Joint Commission will be chaired, on behalf of EU High Representative Josep Borrell, by the Deputy Secretary General/Political Director of the European External Action Service, Enrique Mora. It will be attended by representatives of China, France, Germany, Russia, the United Kingdom and Iran. Participants will continue their discussions in view of a possible return of the United States to the JCPOA and on how to ensure the full and effective implementation of the JCPOA,” the statement said. 

Iran’s Deputy Foreign Minister Seyed Abbas Araqchi who is leading the Iranian negotiating team in the Vienna talks confirmed on his Telegram channel the JCPOA Joint Commission will convene on Wednesday night. 

In remarks to Iran’s TV, he also said that the meeting will conclude the fifth round of talks. “Today we are in a situation where we have to make a new conclusion on the negotiations that have taken place so far,” he said ahead of the meeting. 

He added, “All delegations concluded that visits should be made to the capitals for further consultation and further decision-making on disputes. Today we will have a final meeting of the Joint Commission, after which the delegations will return to their capitals.”

The top Iranian nuclear negotiator said during the Wednesday meeting a return date will likely be set for delegations to return to Vienna. 

“All delegations are determined and there is complete seriousness. Disagreements have reached a point where everyone believes that it is not impossible to resolve, but details are important anyway, and our firm positions are important to be respected. God willing, the meeting will conclude when we will start,” Araqchi said, noting, “I do not know if it will be too far and we will probably return to Vienna after a consultation period in Tehran, God willing, as in the past.”

Source: Tehran Times