Top Iran nuclear negotiator flies home as talks finish line remains elusive

Iran’s top diplomat at monthslong talks aimed at restoring its tattered nuclear deal with world powers has flown home for a sudden trip, a sign of the growing pressure on Tehran as the negotiations appear to be nearing their end.

Iran’s state-run IRNA news agency describes Ali Bagheri Kani’s trip late Monday as being “within the framework of the usual consultations during the talks.”

Chief Iranian nuclear negotiator Ali Bagheri Kani arrives at the Coburg Palace, venue of the talks aimed at reviving the Iran nuclear deal, in Vienna, on February 8, 2022. (Alex Halada/AFP)

However, the top negotiator for the European Union seems to suggest whether the talks succeeded or failed now rested with the Islamic Republic.

“There are no longer ‘expert level talks.’ Nor ‘formal meetings,’” Enrique Mora wrote on Twitter, responding to comments by an Iranian analyst. “It is time, in the next few days, for political decisions to end the #ViennaTalks. The rest is noise.”