Iranian Official On Nuke Deal: 'We Did Not Agree To Dismantle Anything'

[Purveyor]

Source: CNN

(CNN) -- Iranian Foreign Minister Mohammad Javad Zarif insisted Wednesday that the Obama administration mischaracterizes concessions by his side in the six-month nuclear deal with Iran, telling CNN in an exclusive interview that "we did not agree to dismantle anything."

Zarif told CNN Chief National Security Correspondent Jim Sciutto that terminology used by the White House to describe the agreement differed from the text agreed to by Iran and the other countries in the talks -- the United States, Britain, France, Russia, China and Germany.

"The White House version both underplays the concessions and overplays Iranian commitments" under the agreement that took effect Monday, Zarif said in Davos, Switzerland, where he was attending the World Economic Forum.

As part of the accord, Iran was required to dilute its stockpile of uranium that had been enriched to 20%, well above the 5% level needed for power generation but still below the level for developing a nuclear weapo

Read more: http://www.cnn.com/2014/01/22/politics/iran-us-nuclear/index.html?utm_source=feedburner&utm_medium=feed&utm_campaign=Feed%3A+rss%2Fcnn_allpolitics+(RSS%3A+Politics)

[Jesus Malverde]

1. Interesting..

"Explain, then, to our viewers, what's different in terms of Iran's commitment to what you agreed to and what the White House says you agreed to?"

The Iranian responded, "Well, the terminology is different. The White House tries to portray it as basically a dismantling of Iran's nuclear program. That is the word they use time and again. And I urge you to read the entire text. If you find a single, a single word that even closely resembles dismantling or could be defined as dismantling in the entire text, then I would take back my comment."

Zarif clarifies, "What Iran has agreed is not to enrich above 5 percent. We did not agree to dismantle anything."

http://www.weeklystandard.com/blogs/iran-foreign-minister-wh-wrong-about-deal-we-did-not-agree-dismantle-anything_775250.html?utm_medium=twitter&utm_source=twitterfeed

[Mosby]

2. Iran Top Nuke Negotiator: Deal Reversible In One Day

Iran’s top nuclear negotiator, Abbas Araghchi, said this week that if Iran decides to resume enriching uranium to levels prohibited by the new nuclear deal, it could begin to do so in one day’s time.

Araghchi spoke on Jan. 12 to the Islamic Republic of Iran Broadcasting Channel 2 following his return from Geneva, where he led the Iranian delegation to the negotiations with the P5+1 countries that resulted in an agreement to implement the Joint Plan of Action signed last November. The interim agreement goes into effect Jan. 20, giving both sides six months to reach a final deal over Iran’s nuclear program.

Critics of the deal, especially in Congress, want any final agreement to force Iran to stop enriching uranium altogether and dismantle its enrichment program. The interim agreement requires Iran to suspend the enrichment of uranium at 20 percent levels and downgrade their existing stockpile of highly-enriched uranium to lower levels. But Araghchi said in the interview that the enrichment suspension is quickly reversible if Iran decides to pull out of the agreement.

“We can return again to 20 percent enrichment in less than one day and we can convert the material again. Therefore the structure of our nuclear program is preserved,” said Araghchi, in a broadcast which was independently translated for The Daily Beast. “Whenever we feel the other side is not following through with its commitments, whenever we feel there are other motives involved, whenever—now, say, under pressure from Congress or something else—they take action against their commitments, say put in place new sanctions, we will immediately revert to the current status quo. And we will again continue our nuclear program in the form that it is today.”

http://www.thedailybeast.com/articles/2014/01/16/iran-top-nuke-negotiator-deal-reversible-in-one-day.html

[Mosby]

3. Iran nuclear deal debate: How much does Tehran benefit?

WASHINGTON – The formal start of the landmark deal to restrain Iran’s nuclear program drew clashing statements from Iran and the Obama administration about how much of a boost the temporary accord would give Iran’s battered economy.

Iran’s leaders, eager to sell the temporary accord to their population, said the agreement would open the way to a surge of trade and investment. U.S. officials, facing criticism that the deal is too lenient, insisted that the temporary sanctions relief was chicken feed and that crippling restrictions on Iran’s economy remain.

Following implementation of the deal, “the window of opportunity for Iran’s trade with Europe will increase tenfold,” Abbas Araqchi, Iran’s chief nuclear negotiator, told the semi-official Islamic Republic News Agency. “The private sector of Iran will have a great share of trade with the European Union.”

Ali Akbar Salehi, head of Iran's nuclear agency, said the deal was a victory on two key points, because it marked the beginning of the end of sanctions while allowing Iran to continue low-level nuclear enrichment.

"The iceberg of sanctions is melting while our centrifuges are also still working," he said on state television. "This is our greatest achievement."

http://touch.latimes.com/#section/-1/article/p2p-78970451/

[bananas]

6. Your links aren't working

http://www.latimes.com/world/worldnow/la-fg-wn-iran-nuclear-deal-debate-20140120,0,2063763.story

[bemildred]

4. Sounds good.

With this much huffing and puffing over minutae and spin, both sides must be serious.

[TwilightGardener]

5. They've got hardliners to satisfy, same as we have our nutjobs here.

So, grain of salt. We'll see how it works out.