Iran Abandons Key Red Line Demand As Progress On Renewed Nuclear Deal Moves Forward

“The current version of the text, and what they’re asking for, rejects that,” the official said, noting that the US has repeatedly and consistently rejected the request. “So if we’re closer to a deal, that’s why.” The Iranians also dropped requests to delist several IRGC-linked companies, the official said. The official added that “the President has been firm and consistent that he will not lift the terrorist designation of Iran’s Revolutionary Guard Corps.” However, the official said that while a deal is now “closer than it was two weeks ago, the outcome remains uncertain as some loopholes remain. President Biden will only approve a deal that meets our national security interests.” Progress from there could be slow, another senior administration official said. But there seems to be more momentum now than there was last year. President Joe Biden has insisted for months that he will not de-designate the IRGC in order to revive the nuclear deal, known as the Joint Comprehensive Plan of Action. Asked in July in an interview with Israel’s Channel 12 whether he was still committed to keeping the IRGC on the list, even if it meant killing the deal for good, Biden replied: “Yes.” The policy is one of several foreign policy decisions made by former President Donald Trump that Biden has maintained — the Trump administration designated the IRGC a terrorist organization in 2019 as part of a “maximum pressure campaign” imposed after the withdrawal of the U.S. from the deal in 2018. The Biden administration has also continued to impose new sanctions on Iran as nuclear deal talks continue. While the US feels that one major hurdle has been removed, some other hurdles remain. These include Tehran’s desire for a guarantee that it will be compensated if a future US president pulls out of the deal and its demand to end a three-year International Atomic Energy Agency investigation into its nuclear program. The Biden administration’s position on these issues has not changed, officials told CNN. Iran still has to explain to the IAEA why undeclared nuclear material – traces of uranium – were found at Iranian sites in 2019, officials said. And the U.S. has also made clear to Iran that it cannot bind future administrations to the deal, nor promise compensation if a U.S. president ever withdraws, the officials said. Politically, meanwhile, Republican opposition to the deal in the US remains strong, even if delisting the IRGC is not part of the deal. That opposition has only grown in recent weeks with the Justice Department indicting an Iranian plotting to assassinate former National Security Adviser John Bolton and the attack on author Salman Rushdie praised by Iranian officials. Republicans also insisted they would try to block any sanctions relief Iran could receive for rejoining the JCPOA. “Their deal lifts sanctions on the Iranian economy and floods the regime with hundreds of billions of dollars, even as Iran tries to hunt down and kill former US officials and dissidents on US soil,” Republican Sen. Ted Cruz of Texas. Cruz added that he is “committed to blocking and undoing this disastrous deal.” For now, the US is conveying private comments to the Europeans, a senior administration official said. However, the US has yet to formally respond to the EU and Iran drafts, another administration official said. “As we do in the Biden administration, we’re doing our job,” said one senior administration official. “We’re consulting our interagency experts. And when we prepare a response, we’ll send it back.” CNN’s Jennifer Hansler contributed reporting.

title: “Iran Abandons Key Red Line Demand As Progress On Renewed Nuclear Deal Moves Forward Klmat” ShowToc: true date: “2022-11-03” author: “Florence Villanueva”

“The current version of the text, and what they’re asking for, rejects that,” the official said, noting that the US has repeatedly and consistently rejected the request. “So if we’re closer to a deal, that’s why.” The Iranians also dropped requests to delist several IRGC-linked companies, the official said. The official added that “the President has been firm and consistent that he will not lift the terrorist designation of Iran’s Revolutionary Guard Corps.” However, the official said that while a deal is now “closer than it was two weeks ago, the outcome remains uncertain as some loopholes remain. President Biden will only approve a deal that meets our national security interests.” Progress from there could be slow, another senior administration official said. But there seems to be more momentum now than there was last year. President Joe Biden has insisted for months that he will not de-designate the IRGC in order to revive the nuclear deal, known as the Joint Comprehensive Plan of Action. Asked in July in an interview with Israel’s Channel 12 whether he was still committed to keeping the IRGC on the list, even if it meant killing the deal for good, Biden replied: “Yes.” The policy is one of several foreign policy decisions made by former President Donald Trump that Biden has maintained — the Trump administration designated the IRGC a terrorist organization in 2019 as part of a “maximum pressure campaign” imposed after the withdrawal of the U.S. from the deal in 2018. The Biden administration has also continued to impose new sanctions on Iran as nuclear deal talks continue. While the US feels that one major hurdle has been removed, some other hurdles remain. These include Tehran’s desire for a guarantee that it will be compensated if a future US president pulls out of the deal and its demand to end a three-year International Atomic Energy Agency investigation into its nuclear program. The Biden administration’s position on these issues has not changed, officials told CNN. Iran still has to explain to the IAEA why undeclared nuclear material – traces of uranium – were found at Iranian sites in 2019, officials said. And the U.S. has also made clear to Iran that it cannot bind future administrations to the deal, nor promise compensation if a U.S. president ever withdraws, the officials said. Politically, meanwhile, Republican opposition to the deal in the US remains strong, even if delisting the IRGC is not part of the deal. That opposition has only grown in recent weeks with the Justice Department indicting an Iranian plotting to assassinate former National Security Adviser John Bolton and the attack on author Salman Rushdie praised by Iranian officials. Republicans also insisted they would try to block any sanctions relief Iran could receive for rejoining the JCPOA. “Their deal lifts sanctions on the Iranian economy and floods the regime with hundreds of billions of dollars, even as Iran tries to hunt down and kill former US officials and dissidents on US soil,” Republican Sen. Ted Cruz of Texas. Cruz added that he is “committed to blocking and undoing this disastrous deal.” For now, the US is conveying private comments to the Europeans, a senior administration official said. However, the US has yet to formally respond to the EU and Iran drafts, another administration official said. “As we do in the Biden administration, we’re doing our job,” said one senior administration official. “We’re consulting our interagency experts. And when we prepare a response, we’ll send it back.” CNN’s Jennifer Hansler contributed reporting.

title: “Iran Abandons Key Red Line Demand As Progress On Renewed Nuclear Deal Moves Forward Klmat” ShowToc: true date: “2022-10-31” author: “Agnes Collins”

“The current version of the text, and what they’re asking for, rejects that,” the official said, noting that the US has repeatedly and consistently rejected the request. “So if we’re closer to a deal, that’s why.” The Iranians also dropped requests to delist several IRGC-linked companies, the official said. The official added that “the President has been firm and consistent that he will not lift the terrorist designation of Iran’s Revolutionary Guard Corps.” However, the official said that while a deal is now “closer than it was two weeks ago, the outcome remains uncertain as some loopholes remain. President Biden will only approve a deal that meets our national security interests.” Progress from there could be slow, another senior administration official said. But there seems to be more momentum now than there was last year. President Joe Biden has insisted for months that he will not de-designate the IRGC in order to revive the nuclear deal, known as the Joint Comprehensive Plan of Action. Asked in July in an interview with Israel’s Channel 12 whether he was still committed to keeping the IRGC on the list, even if it meant killing the deal for good, Biden replied: “Yes.” The policy is one of several foreign policy decisions made by former President Donald Trump that Biden has maintained — the Trump administration designated the IRGC a terrorist organization in 2019 as part of a “maximum pressure campaign” imposed after the withdrawal of the U.S. from the deal in 2018. The Biden administration has also continued to impose new sanctions on Iran as nuclear deal talks continue. While the US feels that one major hurdle has been removed, some other hurdles remain. These include Tehran’s desire for a guarantee that it will be compensated if a future US president pulls out of the deal and its demand to end a three-year International Atomic Energy Agency investigation into its nuclear program. The Biden administration’s position on these issues has not changed, officials told CNN. Iran still has to explain to the IAEA why undeclared nuclear material – traces of uranium – were found at Iranian sites in 2019, officials said. And the U.S. has also made clear to Iran that it cannot bind future administrations to the deal, nor promise compensation if a U.S. president ever withdraws, the officials said. Politically, meanwhile, Republican opposition to the deal in the US remains strong, even if delisting the IRGC is not part of the deal. That opposition has only grown in recent weeks with the Justice Department indicting an Iranian plotting to assassinate former National Security Adviser John Bolton and the attack on author Salman Rushdie praised by Iranian officials. Republicans also insisted they would try to block any sanctions relief Iran could receive for rejoining the JCPOA. “Their deal lifts sanctions on the Iranian economy and floods the regime with hundreds of billions of dollars, even as Iran tries to hunt down and kill former US officials and dissidents on US soil,” Republican Sen. Ted Cruz of Texas. Cruz added that he is “committed to blocking and undoing this disastrous deal.” For now, the US is conveying private comments to the Europeans, a senior administration official said. However, the US has yet to formally respond to the EU and Iran drafts, another administration official said. “As we do in the Biden administration, we’re doing our job,” said one senior administration official. “We’re consulting our interagency experts. And when we prepare a response, we’ll send it back.” CNN’s Jennifer Hansler contributed reporting.

title: “Iran Abandons Key Red Line Demand As Progress On Renewed Nuclear Deal Moves Forward Klmat” ShowToc: true date: “2022-12-14” author: “John Lim”

“The current version of the text, and what they’re asking for, rejects that,” the official said, noting that the US has repeatedly and consistently rejected the request. “So if we’re closer to a deal, that’s why.” The Iranians also dropped requests to delist several IRGC-linked companies, the official said. The official added that “the President has been firm and consistent that he will not lift the terrorist designation of Iran’s Revolutionary Guard Corps.” However, the official said that while a deal is now “closer than it was two weeks ago, the outcome remains uncertain as some loopholes remain. President Biden will only approve a deal that meets our national security interests.” Progress from there could be slow, another senior administration official said. But there seems to be more momentum now than there was last year. President Joe Biden has insisted for months that he will not de-designate the IRGC in order to revive the nuclear deal, known as the Joint Comprehensive Plan of Action. Asked in July in an interview with Israel’s Channel 12 whether he was still committed to keeping the IRGC on the list, even if it meant killing the deal for good, Biden replied: “Yes.” The policy is one of several foreign policy decisions made by former President Donald Trump that Biden has maintained — the Trump administration designated the IRGC a terrorist organization in 2019 as part of a “maximum pressure campaign” imposed after the withdrawal of the U.S. from the deal in 2018. The Biden administration has also continued to impose new sanctions on Iran as nuclear deal talks continue. While the US feels that one major hurdle has been removed, some other hurdles remain. These include Tehran’s desire for a guarantee that it will be compensated if a future US president pulls out of the deal and its demand to end a three-year International Atomic Energy Agency investigation into its nuclear program. The Biden administration’s position on these issues has not changed, officials told CNN. Iran still has to explain to the IAEA why undeclared nuclear material – traces of uranium – were found at Iranian sites in 2019, officials said. And the U.S. has also made clear to Iran that it cannot bind future administrations to the deal, nor promise compensation if a U.S. president ever withdraws, the officials said. Politically, meanwhile, Republican opposition to the deal in the US remains strong, even if delisting the IRGC is not part of the deal. That opposition has only grown in recent weeks with the Justice Department indicting an Iranian plotting to assassinate former National Security Adviser John Bolton and the attack on author Salman Rushdie praised by Iranian officials. Republicans also insisted they would try to block any sanctions relief Iran could receive for rejoining the JCPOA. “Their deal lifts sanctions on the Iranian economy and floods the regime with hundreds of billions of dollars, even as Iran tries to hunt down and kill former US officials and dissidents on US soil,” Republican Sen. Ted Cruz of Texas. Cruz added that he is “committed to blocking and undoing this disastrous deal.” For now, the US is conveying private comments to the Europeans, a senior administration official said. However, the US has yet to formally respond to the EU and Iran drafts, another administration official said. “As we do in the Biden administration, we’re doing our job,” said one senior administration official. “We’re consulting our interagency experts. And when we prepare a response, we’ll send it back.” CNN’s Jennifer Hansler contributed reporting.