The two conditions that could make or break the deal with Iran, are the same two demands that Iran is determined to insist on going into the six-months talking period over a permanent deal.

In a wide-ranging interview with TIME magazine, Iran’s Foreign Minister Mohammed Javad Zarif said that the sanctions regime and the U.S. insisting Iran to give up enrichment program remain the two main obstacles in a final deal.

“I believe it’s rather straightforward. We can reach an agreement but there are some areas which are more difficult than others,” Zarif said.

On Saturday, President Obama claimed that the Geneva deal has rolled back Iran’s enrichment program to zero and that the Arak facility would shut down. “We’re taking that down to zero. We are stopping the advancement of the Arak facility, which would provide an additional pathway, a plutonium pathway for the development of nuclear weapons,” Obama said at the Saban forum in DC.

But for Iran’s Foreign Minister, the P5+1 demands are just non-compliance. “Why do we even need Arak? Because we need to produce radio isotopes for medical purposes and even Arak alone is not enough for us,” Zarif told TIME. “We made a lot investment both in terms of human capital as well as in terms of material resources and we have reached almost the end game of getting this research reactor into actual operation. So it’s too late in the game for somebody to come and tell us that we have concerns that cannot be addressed. We have to find solutions. We believe there are scientific solutions for this and we are open to discussing them but that will be one of the more difficult issues.”

Iran would also consider the entire Geneva deal void if Congress imposes new sanctions, even if they don’t go into effect for six months, Zarif said.

“We do not like to negotiate under duress. And if Congress adopts sanctions, it shows lack of seriousness and lack of a desire to achieve a resolution on the part of the United States,” he said. “I know the domestic complications and various issues inside the United States, but for me that is no justification. I have a parliament. My parliament can also adopt various legislation that can go into effect if negotiations fail. But if we start doing that, I don’t think that we will be getting anywhere.”

In his Saturday appearance, President Obama said he believed the chances for a comprehensive nuclear agreement with Iran are 50-50 or worse. “If you ask me what is the likelihood that we’re able to arrive at the end state … I wouldn’t say that it’s more than 50-50,” Obama said. “But we have to try.”

(Jacob Kornbluh – YWN)