(Cipher Brief) Col. (res.) Eldad Shavit and Dr. Raz Zimmt - Despite Biden's promises to return the U.S. to the nuclear deal with Iran, the likelihood that the administration will quickly lift all sanctions to rejoin the deal and turn back the clock to the last days of the Obama administration is extremely low. Both countries cannot ignore the developments that have taken place since the JCPOA was signed in 2015. The new U.S. administration must be prepared for a long and complicated process in which Tehran will demand compensation every step of the way - from renewing talks, to returning to the JCPOA, to expanding the agreement. In anticipation of this, the U.S. should retain as many "cards" as possible for the future, in particular for negotiating a new and improved agreement which more comprehensively covers the challenges Iran poses to the international community. An improved agreement ought to require at least a partial closure of the loopholes of the JCPOA through the extension of the sunset clauses, prohibition of R&D on advanced centrifuges, and expanding IAEA supervision over suspected military components of Iran's nuclear program. In addition, an improved agreement should seek to extend restrictions on Iran's missile program. Col. (res.) Eldad Shavit, a senior researcher at the Institute for National Security Studies at Tel Aviv University, served as head of the research division of IDF Military Intelligence. Dr. Raz Zimmt, a research fellow at INSS, is also a veteran Iran-watcher in the Israeli Defense Forces.
2020-11-26 00:00:00Full ArticleBACK Visit the Daily Alert Archive