Blinken: Unclear Whether Iran Will Comply with Nuclear Commitments

U.S. Secretary of State Antony Blinken said Sunday it is not clear whether Iran will comply with restrictions on its nuclear development program in order to have U.S. economic sanctions removed.

"Iran, I think, knows what it needs to do to come back into compliance on the nuclear side, and what we haven't yet seen is whether Iran is ready and willing to make a decision to do what it has to do,” Blinken told ABC’s “This Week” show. “That's the test and we don't yet have an answer.” Iran has been in indirect talks with the United States through diplomats from other countries in reshaping the 2015 international nuclear deal to restrain Tehran’s nuclear ambitions. Iran has said its nuclear program is for peaceful purposes. Then-U.S. President Donald Trump withdrew the U.S. from the pact in 2018, imposing new sanctions on Tehran’s oil, banking and shipping sectors. But U.S. President Joe Biden is looking to rejoin the pact that includes Britain, France, Germany, Russia and China.