Talks persist in Vienna and elsewhere at reviving the Iran nuclear deal

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Talks persist in Vienna and elsewhere at reviving the Iran nuclear deal

Transcript¹

As talks continue to try to restart the deal that put limits on Iran's nuclear program, there's a flurry of diplomatic meetings. Iran wants the U.S. to guarantee it'll stick to the deal this time.

A MARTINEZ, HOST:

There's a flurry of meetings around the effort to revive the international agreement that had put limits on Iran's nuclear program. The deal has largely fallen apart since the Trump² administration abandoned it in 2018. The U.S. reimposed economic sanctions, and Iran has ramped³ up its production of uranium toward what would be needed if it wanted to build a bomb. Talks are ongoing⁴ in Vienna and elsewhere about bringing both the U.S. and Iran back into compliance⁵.

NPR's Peter Kenyon joins us from Istanbul to discuss the latest. Peter, we mentioned that former President Trump took the U.S. out of this deal. He said the Obama administration hadn't made it tough enough. And that seems to be an issue still for the Iranians. Can you update us on that?

PETER KENYON, BYLINE⁶: Well, the Trump withdrawal⁷ from the original agreement is a massive issue for the Iranians. And they are now demanding binding⁹ guarantees that it won't happen again. And now, from Tehran's point of view, that's simple, common sense. Why would Iran agree to restrict its nuclear program in exchange for sanctions relief if that relief could be overturned at any time? The Americans say, practically speaking, such a guarantee isn't really possible.

The deal is not a formal treaty, which would be harder to get out of. But then, if it was a treaty, it would have needed a two-thirds vote in the U.S. Senate, which analysts¹⁰ say would have been pretty much impossible. There is another factor at play now, and that's money. When the original deal took effect, billions of dollars flowed into Iran to the consternation¹¹ of critics in the West. And it's possible another influx¹² of cash could be highly attractive to Tehran and might help them get back into compliance with the deal, even without guarantees.

MARTINEZ: They've had several rounds of talks. Where do the other issues stand as talks resume this week?

KENYON: Well, reports out of Vienna suggest some progress has been made on what both sides would need to do to restore the agreement. But there are key important decisions remaining to be made on an exact sequence of events - who does what, when - and the crucial item of lifting sanctions, how quickly, how that happens, et cetera. And remember, the U.S. isn't directly involved here. As a non-party to the agreement, the U.S. isn't at the table. Since 2018, when then-President Trump pulled out of the deal, it's been the four other members of the U.N. Security Council - the U.K., France, Russia and China - plus Germany negotiating directly with Iran.

MARTINEZ: There are other meetings possibly coming up in Russia and Saudi Arabia. What's known about those so far?

KENYON: Well, Iran's president, Ebrahim Raisi, is to visit Russia next week. And Moscow is interested in salvaging¹³ the nuclear agreement. What exactly they'll talk about, how it will go about achieving that goal isn't yet clear. As for Saudi Arabia, crown prince Mohammed bin⁸ Salman says a serious approach is needed to ensure restrictions¹⁴ on Iran's nuclear program and its missile program. Now, Iran's ballistic missiles are not covered in the 2015 nuclear agreement. That's something President Joe Biden says he wants to talk about with Iran once that deal is restored and put back in force. But so far, Iran has resisted, saying its conventional weapons are really not on the table for discussion now or later.

MARTINEZ: Is there any time crunch¹⁵ on this? Or can they just keep talking for weeks and months?

KENYON: There's some pressure. It's coming from the U.S. Washington wants results soon. There's a concern that if Iran's nuclear program advances too far, this agreement won't be able to work, won't achieve the results they want. Tehran says it will not be held to, quote, "fabricated deadlines." And remember, this is all about restoring the original deal, which was criticized for not being tough enough on Iran and not lasting¹⁶ long enough. Addressing those concerns would mean a new round of talks and with hard-liners in charge from Supreme¹⁷ Leader Khamenei to President Raisi, to the legislature and the courts. They're all in the hard-line camp. And it doesn't seem likely that they would want to rush into a new set of talks.

MARTINEZ: That's NPR's Peter Kenyon. Peter, thanks.

KENYON: You're welcome.

1 transcript   

n.抄本，誊本，副本，肄业证书

参考例句：

• A transcript of the tapes was presented as evidence in court.一份录音带的文字本作为证据被呈交法庭。
• They wouldn't let me have a transcript of the interview.他们拒绝给我一份采访的文字整理稿。

2 trump   

n.王牌，法宝；v.打出王牌，吹喇叭

参考例句：

• He was never able to trump up the courage to have a showdown.他始终鼓不起勇气摊牌。
• The coach saved his star player for a trump card.教练保留他的明星选手，作为他的王牌。

3 ramped   

土堤斜坡( ramp的过去式和过去分词 )； 斜道； 斜路； （装车或上下飞机的）活动梯

参考例句：

• With the arrival of George Lucas, the pace has ramped up. 随着乔治·卢卡斯的到来，速度大大加快。
• They also sold corporate bonds as the global financial crisis ramped up. 在全球金融危机加剧之际，他们还抛售了公司债券。

4 ongoing   

adj.进行中的，前进的

参考例句：

• The problem is ongoing.这个问题尚未解决。
• The issues raised in the report relate directly to Age Concern's ongoing work in this area.报告中提出的问题与“关心老人”组织在这方面正在做的工作有直接的关系。

5 compliance   

n.顺从；服从；附和；屈从

参考例句：

• I was surprised by his compliance with these terms.我对他竟然依从了这些条件而感到吃惊。
• She gave up the idea in compliance with his desire.她顺从他的愿望而放弃自己的主意。

6 byline   

n.署名；v.署名

参考例句：

• His byline was absent as well.他的署名也不见了。
• We wish to thank the author of this article which carries no byline.我们要感谢这篇文章的那位没有署名的作者。

7 withdrawal   

n.取回，提款；撤退，撤军；收回，撤销

参考例句：

• The police were forced to make a tactical withdrawal.警方被迫进行战术撤退。
• They insisted upon a withdrawal of the statement and a public apology.他们坚持要收回那些话并公开道歉。

8 bin   

n.箱柜；vt.放入箱内；[计算机] DOS文件名:二进制目标文件

参考例句：

• He emptied several bags of rice into a bin.他把几袋米倒进大箱里。
• He threw the empty bottles in the bin.他把空瓶子扔进垃圾箱。

9 binding   

有约束力的，有效的，应遵守的

参考例句：

• The contract was not signed and has no binding force. 合同没有签署因而没有约束力。
• Both sides have agreed that the arbitration will be binding. 双方都赞同仲裁具有约束力。

10 analysts   

分析家，化验员( analyst的名词复数 )

参考例句：

• City analysts forecast huge profits this year. 伦敦金融分析家预测今年的利润非常丰厚。
• I was impressed by the high calibre of the researchers and analysts. 研究人员和分析人员的高素质给我留下了深刻印象。

11 consternation   

n.大为吃惊，惊骇

参考例句：

• He was filled with consternation to hear that his friend was so ill.他听说朋友病得那么厉害，感到非常震惊。
• Sam stared at him in consternation.萨姆惊恐不安地注视着他。

12 influx   

n.流入，注入

参考例句：

• The country simply cannot absorb this influx of refugees.这个国家实在不能接纳这么多涌入的难民。
• Textile workers favoured protection because they feared an influx of cheap cloth.纺织工人拥护贸易保护措施，因为他们担心涌入廉价纺织品。

13 salvaging   

（从火灾、海难等中）抢救（某物）( salvage的现在分词 )； 回收利用（某物）

参考例句：

• A shipping company has made a claim for the cost of salvaging a sunken ship. 某轮船公司要求赔赏打捞沉船的费用。（make a claim 要求）
• It is not uncommon to hear that a shipping company has made a claim for the cost of salvaging a sunken ship. 航运公司为打捞沉船的费用而提出要求，这并非奇闻。

14 restrictions   

约束( restriction的名词复数 )； 管制； 制约因素； 带限制性的条件（或规则）

参考例句：

• I found the restrictions irksome. 我对那些限制感到很烦。
• a snaggle of restrictions 杂乱无章的种种限制

15 crunch   

n.关键时刻；艰难局面；v.发出碎裂声

参考例句：

• If it comes to the crunch they'll support us.关键时刻他们是会支持我们的。
• People who crunch nuts at the movies can be very annoying.看电影时嘎吱作声地嚼干果的人会使人十分讨厌。

16 lasting   

adj.永久的，永恒的；vbl.持续，维持

参考例句：

• The lasting war debased the value of the dollar.持久的战争使美元贬值。
• We hope for a lasting settlement of all these troubles.我们希望这些纠纷能获得永久的解决。

17 supreme   

adj.极度的，最重要的；至高的，最高的

参考例句：

• It was the supreme moment in his life.那是他一生中最重要的时刻。
• He handed up the indictment to the supreme court.他把起诉书送交最高法院。