Iran says ready for prisoner exchange with US with or without nuclear agreement

Iranian Foreign Ministry spokesman, Nasser Kanaani said Sunday, that Tehran is ready to conduct a prisoner exchange deal with the United States, whether the nuclear agreement is revived or not.

In an interview with the Iranian Students News Agency (ISNA), Kanaani said his country had conducted negotiations “in different ways” with the United States regarding the exchange of prisoners, explaining that “now it is the decision of America whether this deal is implemented or not.”

Kanaani denied Russia’s involvement in the faltering of the nuclear negotiations and described them as “baseless.” He stressed that the US is the one that must “shoulder its responsibilities and work to make the negotiations a success.”

“America’s suggestions from time to time about the Islamic Republic of Iran, and Russia’s role in the negotiations are nothing but projections” he added.

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The Iranian official’s comments came in light of US and European statements issued by the European Union’s foreign policy chief, Josep Borrell, that the nuclear negotiations have reached a “deadlock.”

For months, Iran and the US have been conducting indirect talks aimed at reviving the nuclear deal after former US President Donald Trump unilaterally withdrew from it in May 2018 and reimposed sanctions previously lifted under the deal.

However, over the past few weeks, the possibility of restoring the deal has been fading away amid accusations by Iran and the United States against each other of obstructing efforts to restore the deal.

Iran Deal – Cartoon [Sabaaneh/MiddleEastMonitor]