Peloni: My, my, my…the Iranians believe that they have so little to discuss with the Americans…it is almost as if they have an Armageddonist-Twelver death wish…
Rubio: Iran refuses discussion about limits on missile program, support for proxies, and treatment of protesters
B-2A Spirit bombers assigned to the 509th Bomb Wing and an F-15C Eagle assigned to the 48th Fighter Wing conduct aerial operations in support of Bomber Task Force Europe 20-2 over the North Sea March 12, 2020. Photo by U.S. Air Force 148FW by Master Sgt. Matthew Plew – This image was released by the United States Air Force with the ID 200312-F-QP712-0190 (next). Public Domain, Wikipedia
The negotiations between the Iranian regime and the U.S., which had been planned for Friday, were canceled after the regime demanded changes to the format and the location of the talks, according to various media reports on Wednesday evening.
The U.S. reportedly didn’t agree to the Iranian demands to shift the talks from Turkey to Oman, and to hold them in a bilateral format focusing only on the nuclear issue.
“The gaps between the United States and Iran are very, very large—and cannot be bridged,” a senior Israeli official was quoted by Israeli media outlets.
“We told them it is this or nothing, and they said, ‘Ok, then nothing,’” a senior U.S. official told the news outlet Axios, adding that the U.S. continues to be ready for talks under the original format.
“We want to reach a real deal quickly, or people will look at other options,” the senior official added.
The collapse of the planned negotiations is pushing U.S. President Donald Trump toward considering military strikes against the regime once again, U.S. officials told Reuters on Wednesday.
A senior Iranian source charged that the American leaks about the collapse of talks are proof of Washington’s lack of seriousness, according to the Qatari newspaper Al-Araby Al-Jadeed.
“We will not accept negotiations on any issue other than the nuclear program. It appears that the hardline current opposed to diplomacy is prevailing over the American decision regarding the talks,” the source said.
Following the cancellation, U.S. officials told Axios that White House envoy Steve Witkoff and Trump’s son-in-law and adviser Jared Kushner, who were meant to represent the U.S. in the talks and arrived in the region on Tuesday, would return home after discussing the Iran issue with the Qatari prime minister on Thursday.
The collapse of the talks had apparently become more likely throughout Tuesday and Wednesday, as Iranian officials began demanding several changes to the agreed-upon summit in Turkey, where several foreign ministers from countries in the region were expected to attend.
They pushed for a move to Oman, to which the U.S. reportedly agreed. However, two “very aggressive” Iranian actions toward U.S. vessels had further ramped up tensions.
Speaking earlier on Wednesday, U.S. Secretary of State Marco Rubio had warned that the regime’s demands were risking the success of the talks. “I’m not sure you can reach a deal with these guys, but we’re going to try to find out,” he told reporters. “We don’t see there’s any harm in trying to figure out there’s something that can be done.”
He also reiterated that the talks “will have to include certain things, and that includes the range of their ballistic missiles, that includes their sponsorship of terrorist organizations across the region, that includes a nuclear program, and that includes the treatment of [the] people.”
After Rubio’s statements, Reuters quoted a senior Iranian official as saying that the U.S.’s insistence on broadening the scope of the talks was risky, and that limits on the missile program were “off the table.”
“The Islamic Republic would rather risk regime change by attack in Iran – having survived the 12-Day War – than regime change by agreement,” analyzed Jason Brodsky of the United Against Nuclear Iran think tank.
“This is why Khamenei refuses to discuss non-nuclear issues in the talks. He believes there is a better chance at regime survival even after an attack. It sounds crazy to Western ears but this is the calculation,” Brodsky wrote on ?.
The Iranian demands apparently also angered the other states that were due to participate in the talks, even including Qatar, which has maintained warm relations with the regime. Several of these countries, including Saudi Arabia, Qatar, Turkey and others, had reportedly pushed the U.S. to find a diplomatic solution rather than risk provoking a regional escalation through military strikes.
However, Qatar’s foreign ministry spokesman Majed Al Ansari on Tuesday urged the return to negotiations covering all issues and without excluding any country.
“Qatar’s current focus is on moving the region from a state of tension, mutual statements, and escalation to a new negotiation phase involving all regional partners, affirming the continuation of joint efforts without excluding any country, reflecting a collective international will to de-escalate the region,” he emphasized.
Commenting on this, Brodsky noted that “It takes a lot for Tehran to anger Qatar, and the Islamic Republic succeeded in doing so today.”
Israel’s Channel 12 reported in the evening that Israeli officials had forewarned Witkoff of Iran’s actions during Tuesday’s meeting.
“Iran is stalling and, as usual, trying to deceive and mislead. They are not coming to the talks with clean hands. Limiting the ballistic missile project is not only in our interest, but in the interest of the entire region,” Channel 12 quoted senior officials as saying.
Witkoff reportedly answered, “We know very well what your red lines are. We are not going to an agreement at any price.”
What a waste of time! And taxpayer dollars!!!