Vienna talks are Rouhani’s last chance to put Iran back on track

Noura Bendari

Iranians pin their hopes on the ongoing 4+1 negotiations taking place in Vienna, Austria, now to contribute to lifting the American sanctions imposed on their country and consequently improve Iran’s economic conditions.

The negotiations are the last chance for Iranian President Hassan Rouhani to honor his pledges to Iranians, especially with two months only remaining for him in the office of president.

Two weeks have passed since the negotiations started in early April. However, there are no tangible results from the negotiations that aim to revive Iran’s 2015 nuclear deal with the West.

Iranian government officials, for their part, expressed hopes that the negotiations will contribute to lifting the US sanctions. The Iranian officials even say that lifting the sanctions is their primary goal from the negotiations.

Iran decided recently to ratchet up pressure on Western countries by raising its uranium-enrichment level to 60%. This means that the Islamic Republic is so close to manufacturing a nuclear bomb, hence giving a lot of worry to the European Troika.

Property confiscation

The Iranians are also asking questions about their country’s fate if it fails in reaching a deal with Western countries negotiating with it in Vienna now.

A member of the Iranian parliament suggested that Iranian authorities confiscate the properties of President Rouhani if he fails in lifting the US sanctions on their country.

The same lawmaker also suggested the confiscation of the properties of all Iranian officials, including the foreign minister and top negotiators.