TEHRAN (Bazaar) –Nader Entessar, Professor Emeritus of Political Science from university of South Alabama says that I don't think the French President's latest statement should be interpreted as a sign of a new breakthrough in the stalled nuclear negotiations.
“Washington, not Paris, is the real player in this game,” Entessar told Bazaar News Agency.
Following is the full text of the Bazaar interview with Professor Entessar:
Q: Iran's Foreign Minister Hossein Amirabdollahian has announced that there will be a consultation on the nuclear issue on the sidelines of the UN meeting and a meeting will be held in this regard. What is your assessment of this meeting and is it possible that America will also be present in it?
A: If you recall, these types of consultations have taken place in previous years during the annual UN meetings in New York. The former Foreign Minister Javad Zarif held several of these types of meetings when he was in office. So, what Foreign Minister Amirabdollahian has said is not unusual. He will hold several face-to-face meetings with the representatives of various countries, including some European ones that are players in the Iran nuclear negotiations. Any American presence in these face-to-face meetings will be indirect, not direct, with interlocutors playing their go-between roles.
Q: French President Emmanuel Macron announced that we want to revive the Iran nuclear deal. Does this position have anything to do with Amir Abdullahian's position?
A: Unless Macron has received a green light from Washington to offer new ideas to revive the dormant JCPOA, I don't think the French President's latest statement should be interpreted as a sign of a new breakthrough in the stalled nuclear negotiations. Washington, not Paris, is the real player in this game.
Q: The spokesperson of Iran's Foreign Ministry has also announced that if the issue of receiving Iranian money is properly resolved, if America returns to its obligations, Iran is also willing to cooperate in the nuclear field. Do you think this process will be completed before the start of the UN session?
A: No, I don't think so. There are too many "ifs" that need to be resolved before the start of the upcoming UN session. There is just not enough time left for this process to run its course before the next annual UN meeting.
Q: Regarding the visit of the official of the International Atomic Energy Agency from Iran, what is your assessment of his report and what effect will his report have on the process of nuclear negotiations?
A: The report will be useful but it will not play a decisive role in determining the outcome of the negotiations.
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