After the failure of high-level talks to make any progress, the Big Six agreed to two sessions of low level talks to see if working level diplomats could find a road to progress.
But nothing happened in those sessions.
The next agreed step was a telephone conversation between Iran’s chief nuclear negotiator, Saeed Jalili, and Catherine Ashton, the foreign policy chief at the EU.
That telephone conversation was held last Thursday. Ashton said nothing came out of it but an agreement for her and Jalili to talk again later this month. She implied that she was waiting for Jalili to make some substantive proposal before she would convene the Big Six again.
In a statement issued by her office, Ashton said, “I … have explored diplomatic ways to resolve international concerns about Iran’s nuclear program. I impressed the need for Iran now to address the issues we have raised in order to build confidence. I proposed, and Dr. Jalili agreed, that we talk again after further reflection at the end of the month.”
There is broad agreement among analysts that neither side wants the talks to come to an end, although both may be satisfied if the talks are just maintained for now on a surgical drip.
For Iran, a formal end to the talks would imply that the West was set to move to much harsher treatment of the Islamic Republic.
For the West, the end of the talks would shut off the forum in which they expect—or at least hope—Iran will eventually make concessions once sanctions threaten the jugular.