Josef Borrel, EU Foreign Policy Chief and lead coordinator of the Vienna negotiations, held, in a telephone call, talks with Iranian Foreign Minister Hossein Amir Abdollahian over the trend of the ongoing negotiations in the Austrian capital. 

Borrel said the talks are at a critical juncture. The EU foreign policy chief added that all sides are expected to come to Vienna with a clear agenda and with the aim of reaching a deal and should be ready for adopting political decisions. In the telephone conversation, Amir Abdollahian also thanked Josef Borrel, Enrique Mora and the EU for their efforts to coordinate the talks in Vienna. The Iranian foreign minister said since the previous round of the talks, there have been some positive developments in the negotiations but they fall short of meeting Iran’s expectations.

The top Iranian diplomat stressed, “We are decisively and explicitly after a good deal but we also insist on safeguarding our red lines and national interests with the same level of decisiveness and explicitness.”

Elsewhere in his comments, Amir Abdollahian said, the nuclear deal, JCPOA, has unfortunately provided no economic benefits for Iran in recent years. The Iranian foreign minister added, “We will reach a good deal only if it realizes our economic interests sustainably and reliably.”

At the end, Amir Abdollahian once again underlined that Iran is determined to reach a good deal and to this end, it will remain in constant and close contact with the EU as the coordinator of the JCPOA.