Why Russia Could Mediate US-Iran Nuclear Talks |
Russian President Vladimir Putin speaks at a joint news conference held at the Kremlin Palace on May 7, 2024. Celeste Wetmore argues that Russia could mediate US-Iran nuclear talks. (Shutterstock/Photoibo)
Why Russia Could Mediate US-Iran Nuclear Talks
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It would be neither impossible nor unprecedented for one of the US’ main adversaries to help stem nuclear proliferation in the Middle East.
In over five months of conflict, America’s objectives in the Iran War have pivoted from regime change to degrading the Iranian military to destroying the Iranian nuclear program. The last objective faces serious hurdles. As Supreme Leader Ayatollah Mojtaba Khamenei appears to wholeheartedly support the regime’s nuclear program, American negotiators have struggled to achieve any diplomatic headway, and sporadic missile exchanges have further derailed negotiations. Another major stumbling block for the nuclear issue is that Washington and Tehran lack a credible mediator. Russia, as the primary external facilitator of Iran’s civilian nuclear program and a longtime US partner on nuclear nonproliferation (despite glaring disagreements on other issues), is well positioned to play this role.
Though it has supported Iran’s civilian nuclear activities for decades, Russia has remained largely aligned with the West on nuclear nonproliferation. Under the 1995 contract that saw Russia install one nuclear reactor in Bushehr, train Iranian personnel, and provide low-enriched uranium fuel, Moscow agreed to repossess Iran’s used nuclear fuel, acquiescing to US pressure on the issue. In the late 1990s, Moscow also obliged when the United States pushed it not to pursue any deal that would see Russian nuclear waste sold to Iran. Most recently, Americans and Russians worked in tandem to achieve the 2015 Joint Comprehensive Plan of Action (JCPOA).
The US-Russia relationship has obviously........