For those who have followed the Joint Comprehensive Plan of Action (JCPOA) closely, the name of Mikhail Ulyanov is familiar. As Russia’s permanent representative to the international body in Vienna, Ulyanov is involved in multiple rounds of negotiations between JCPOA signatories aimed at restoring the agreement after the US unilaterally withdrew and reimposed sanctions on Iran in 2018. played an active role.
In an interview with the Tehran Times, Russian officials said that the remaining signatories of the 2015 nuclear deal (Iran, Russia, China, France, Germany and the United Kingdom) have agreed to reinstate the deal before Europe withdraws from it. He said he is trying to reach an agreement on the issue. He believes that European countries are not the main players here and that saving the JCPOA will depend on US action.
Ulyanov did not say why the Western countries decided to abandon the deal. However, the Western powers withdrew from the negotiating table at a time when Iran was facing internal unrest and violence.
Below is Ulyanov’s full interview with Tehran Times.
What is the current status of negotiations regarding the JCPOA?
JCPOA negotiations stopped in 2022, just as they reached the finish line. All that remained was to agree on a handful of terms. The Western countries, namely the United States, Germany, France and the United Kingdom, decided to abandon the process of finalizing the “package” decision, while Russia, Iran and China were prepared to do so.
As far as we understand, there has recently been an unofficial meeting between Iranian representatives and the political heads of the foreign affairs departments of Germany, France and the United Kingdom, as well as representatives of the former European External Action Service. Contact has been resumed. Role of JCPOA negotiation coordinator. These contacts are preliminary in nature and prove to be informal dialogues far from actual negotiations. Moreover, it is clear that European countries do not and cannot do so.
Do you think Russia played a role in facilitating success?
Russia played an important role in the 2021-2022 negotiations on the restoration of the JCPOA. We sincerely tried our best to achieve the results. To answer your question, I think we can say that at that time, Iran, China, the E3, the United States, and the EU, all of whom participated in this process, evaluated Russia’s contribution very positively. In fact, in many cases we were able to propose certain compromises that received unanimous support and allowed us to move forward.
What are the main challenges remaining for reviving the Iran nuclear deal?
I think the main challenge in this regard is that the Western countries are not ready to restart negotiations at this stage. In many ways, Western countries have become hostage to their own political agendas. It failed to properly consider the Iranian side’s legitimate proposals and demands. They continue to resort to unfair politicization of the issue and regularly take actions against Iran that are not only provocative but also completely unrelated. A clear example of this would be the actions of these countries with politically inadequate anti-Iranian resolutions at the IAEA Board of Directors in Vienna.
What impact will the JCPOA have on regional security and stability?
In my view, the JCPOA had a positive impact on regional security and stability during the 2015-2018 period before the unilateral US withdrawal in 2018. Had the JCPOA been fully restarted in a timely manner, it could undoubtedly have been one of the contributing factors to regional security and stability. Restore stability to the region.
Are there any possible avenues for future cooperation on this issue?
As of today, no one has an answer to this question. The US position remains unclear, particularly regarding whether it acknowledges that withdrawing from the JCPOA and invoking the “maximum pressure” campaign had the opposite effect from what the US had hoped for. It remains to be seen whether the White House is willing to seek a political solution and a reasonable balance of interests, but without it it will be impossible to expect a positive outcome. We expect the situation to become clearer, perhaps within a few months. However, what must be taken into account when addressing this issue is that October 18, 2025 is the deadline for the JCPOA and UN Security Council Resolution 2231.
MNA/