By Arshad Mohammed
WASHINGTON (Reuters) -Iran is not prepared to resume negotiations on coming back into compliance with the 2015 nuclear deal until Iranian President-elect Ebrahim Raisi’s administration has begun, a diplomatic source said on Wednesday.
The source, who spoke on condition of anonymity, said Iran had conveyed this to European officials acting as interlocutors in the indirect U.S.-Iranian negotiations and that the current thinking is the Vienna talks will not resume before mid-August.
“They are not prepared to come back before the new government,” said the source, saying it was not clear whether this meant until Raisi formally takes over on Aug. 5 or until his government is in place.
“We are now talking probably not before mid-August,” added the source.
Talks began in April on reviving the 2015 nuclear deal, formally named the Joint Comprehensive Plan of Action (JCPOA), but have appeared stuck since their sixth round ended on June 20, with no sign when they may resume.
The agreement, which Democratic former President Barack Obama negotiated and Republican former President Donald Trump abandoned, struck a balance between Iran accepting limits to its nuclear program in return for relief from economic sanctions.
The U.S. State Department did not immediately respond to a request for comment on when the talks may resume.
(Reporting By Arshad Mohammed; Editing by Chris Reese and Michael Perry)
