TEHRAN— The Joint Commission meeting of the Joint Comprehensive Plan of Action (JCPOA) continued on Wednesday

Iran’s chief negotiator, Seyyed Abbas Araghchi, said on Tuesday that significant progress has been made, yet the sides still disagree over key unresolved issues. 

The agenda was to discuss the list of the sanctions that the U.S. needs to lift. 

According to Araghchi, the draft of the agreement has been edited and almost ready, yet some key decisions need to be made in the capitals.

The parties expressed their satisfaction over the meeting, with the European Union political director Enrique Mora saying that the fourth round was “the most positive round yet.”

Mora continued by saying that Iran’s agreement with the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) will be extended. He did not specify for how long. 

He called the nuclear deal “the key to stability in the region.”

The EU official noted that a common understanding has shaped on three issues. 

The first one is what still needed for U.S. return to the JCPOA, the second being lifting of related sanctions and the third being resumption of nuclear commitments by Iran.

On whether the sides would agree on the next round of talks, Mora said he can’t venture a guess, but he is “quite sure that there will be a final agreement not far from now.”

Yet, the head of the Russian delegate Mikhail Ulyanov expressed hope that the fifth round of talks would be the final one. 

He tweeted on Wednesday afternoon that an agreement is “within reach.”

The delegations will return to their capitals and will reconvene next week.

It is said that the next meeting will be on Tuesday, May 25.

SA/PA