December 27-2013
Two weeks ago, most news outlets around the world said the talks between Iran and the Big Six had “collapsed” or “fallen apart.” The Iran Times headlined then: “Talks don’t collapse, just pause.”
And that is, in fact, what happened, as the agreement that wasn’t reached the second weekend in November was reached the fourth weekend in the month.
A review of the agreement text shows no great divergence from what was discussed from early in the month. It appeared to many observers that the agreement Iran signed this week could just as easily have been signed two weeks earlier.
This has led to speculation that Iranian Foreign Minister Mohammad-Javad Zarif may have been playing brinksmanship in an effort to portray himself back home as a tough negotiator. This would not be unreasonable, given that many conservatives in Iran have been charging that he is too willing to give in to the wily westerners.
On the other hand, diplomats cautioned that such talks often take a long time as diplomats parse every word seeking to plug every potential loophole. “The assumption is always that the other guy wants loose language that will allow him to do what he wants, unconstrained,” said one.
The theory that Zarif was just playing at brinksmanship got more support this past week as he made a major issue of the United States imposing new sanctions for one week and then just walked away from the issue.