Will Iran's Missile Attack Finally Kill the Nuclear Negotiations Charade?
Guy Benson
Posted: Mar 14, 2022 10:15 AM
We've been beating the drum on the Biden administration's reportedly imminent and shocking giveaway to Iran for days -- harping on the appalling substance of the rumored capitulation, as well as the humiliating reality that the US delegation relied on Kremlin diplomats as intermediaries. The Iranians, Russians and even the Chinese were apparently quite pleased by what the United States was willing to surrender, which was said to be so outrageous that several members of Biden's own team quit in protest, mid-talks. Congress, meanwhile, has been kept in the dark on specifics, by design. Would the legislative branch even have an opportunity to review the forthcoming agreement prior to huge sums of money started flowing to Iran? There was a very concerning sense emerging that the particulars had been agreed upon, and finalization was merely a matter of crossing T's and dotting I's. The message seemed to be, this is happening. But then, as we addressed on Friday, the Russians decided to try to press their advantage and overplayed their hand, potentially derailing the entire process. Sure enough, over the weekend, the negotiations ground to a halt:
Negotiations aimed at restoring Iran’s tattered nuclear deal with world powers went on what its European hosts described as “a pause” on Friday, after Russia demanded relief from sanctions targeting Moscow over its war on Ukraine. Diplomats offered no timetable for when the monthslong talks in Vienna would resume. Negotiators even on Friday maintained that a roadmap was near for how the United States could rejoin the accord it unilaterally withdrew from in 2018, and for Iran to again limit its rapidly advancing nuclear program. While Josep Borrell, the European Union’s foreign policy chief, only referred to “external factors” forcing the pausing, it appeared the Russian demand caused the disruption. “The real issue for this pause here is what Russia has thrown on the table, which is essentially a grenade in the middle of the negotiations,” said Henry Rome, deputy head of research at the Eurasia Group who has been following the talks...Last week, Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov said he wanted “guarantees at least at the level of the secretary of state” that the U.S. sanctions would not affect Moscow’s relationship with Tehran. While American officials sought to describe the demand as not related to the Vienna talks, matters swiftly stalled Friday with a tweet from Borrell.
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https://townhall.com/tipsheet/guybenson/2022/03/14/will-irans-missile-attack-against-irbils-us-consulate-end-the-nuclear-negotiations-charade-n2604494
