The main reason there was no breakthrough in the talks was the Western negotiators’ wrong perception about public opinion in Iran and the response of the Iranian media to the previous round of talks, which was held in Istanbul. In other words, the members of the 5+1 group (the five permanent members of the UN Security Council and Germany) overestimated Iran’s interest in getting the newly imposed sanctions lifted and thought they could press ahead with their illegitimate demand that Iran halt uranium enrichment to a purity level of 20 percent.

 

Perhaps the Western governments have forgotten about the Iranian nation’s historic resistance against external pressure over the past three decades. This negligence should be analyzed in light of the current political and economic situation in Western countries.

 

On the one hand, U.S. President Barack Obama is currently using everything at his disposal to garner more support from the Zionist lobby for the November presidential election. Obama’s inability to control the Arab revolutions has resulted in massive dissatisfaction in Israel and its Zionist sponsors in the United States. Thus, asking Iran to halt uranium enrichment to a purity level of 20 percent, to shut down the Fordow nuclear facility, and to ship all of its stockpiles of enriched uranium to the West in return for some minor concessions are illogical demands made by the U.S. and its allies in the 5+1 group to please the Israelis.

 

On the other hand, European Union countries are suffering due to the major crisis caused by the economic recession, which makes them worried about the outcome of the embargos imposed on Iran, which is an important trade partner of several EU states. As a result, many disputes have arisen between representatives of European members of the 5+1 group and U.S. officials. 

 

Thus, the disagreement on how to deal with Iran among the members of the 5+1 group can be described as the main reason for the inability of the six major powers to adopt a unified stance at the Baghdad talks. However, based on the directives of Supreme Leader of the Islamic Revolution Ayatollah Seyyed Ali Khamenei, the Iranian negotiators were ready to open the doors of interaction and make long-term deals that could ensure the continuation of cooperation between the two sides in the future. 

 

The Western members of the group also hoped to gain the support of China and Russia for their plan to pile up more pressure on Iran. However, those two countries would like to see the sanctions imposed on Iran lifted due to their vast economic ties with the Islamic Republic. The Russian negotiator’s rejection of the idea of continuing the talks based on the U.S. framework made this point very evident.

 

It can be said that the West is still interested in making a deal with Iran, despite the firm stance taken by the Iranian negotiating team at the talks. The decision to make Moscow the next location for the negotiations clearly indicates that the Western governments have such an inclination. It also shows that the policy of resistance, which has been emphasized by the Supreme Leader, is still the best route for Iranian negotiators to take to uphold the inalienable rights of the Iranian nation. 

 

MP Mahnaz Bahmani represents the Sarab constituency of Azarbaijan-e-Sharghi Province in the Iranian parliament.