Iran talks: A good deal or no deal
Op-ed: British ambassador to Israel explains why world powers have extended deadline for reaching an agreement on Iranian nuclear program
As British Foreign Secretary Philip Hammond said following the announcement of the extension of the talks, "Our clear aim remains to reach, within the next few months, a comprehensive agreement which addresses international concerns about Iran’s nuclear program. Extending the negotiations will allow extra space and time to try to achieve this."
I know that there are deep concerns in Israel about these negotiations. There are five particular concerns that I want to address.
First, an extension does not mean we have reached an impasse. We have extended the negotiations to give us the opportunity to reach a good deal, because we want to see if a deal can be done. But we have not got there yet.
Iran needs to be more realistic about the scope of its enrichment program, fully address international concerns including about the past, and take some tough decisions about the future.
Second, it is important to stress that as we allow more time for talks, our goals have not changed. We will not allow Iran to acquire the capability to develop a nuclear weapon. We will not allow Iran to get to close to that capability that there is nothing we can do about it.
The fact that we did not do a deal in Vienna reflects our determination only to do a good deal. We agree with Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu: "No deal is better than a bad deal."
Third, during the negotiations of the past 10 months, the most concerning aspects of Iran’s program have remained frozen. As has been reported by the International Atomic Energy Agency, Iran has not enriched uranium above five percent, nor installed or operated additional centrifuges, nor made further advances at its enrichment facilities at Arak. In fact, the opposite is true – it has converted its entire stock of 20% enriched uranium to oxide.
Fourth, while the negotiations are continuing we have not lifted the crippling sanctions, in particular on oil and gas and in the financial sector. The Iranian economy is still under huge pressure, with the unprecedentedly tough sanctions on financial transactions with Iran all still in place.
The oil sanctions also remain fully in place, costing Iran up to $8 billion every single month. The US and EU sanctions mean that Iran cannot access at least $60 billion of assets overseas. The UK’s position has been very clear: Until a deal is done we do not encourage trade with Iran. And we will carry on enforcing sanctions rigorously and clamping down on sanctions busters.
Finally, we are constantly talking to Israel about all this. The Iranian nuclear program is a fundamental concern for Israel. It also a fundamental concern for Britain, and for the entire international community. And it is for all our sakes that we want to do a good deal, but only a good deal.
The UK and its partners will not settle for just any deal. It will have to be the right deal, one in which the whole world, including Israel, should have confidence.
Matthew Gould is Britain's ambassador to Israel.
