The United States does not plan to lift sanctions from Iran until an agreement is reached on reviving the nuclear deal, a senior US Administration official said.
The parties expect the negotiations on the 2015 Joint Comprehensive Plan of Action to resume soon in Vienna to further discuss the mutual return to the obligations under the deal by Washington and Tehran.
Washington did not lift any sanctions, and is not going make any concessions in advance, the official told reporters.
The situation has significantly deteriorated after the disruption of the agreements under which Iran was supposed to be relieved of sanctions in exchange for limiting its nuclear program, the official said. Tehran is now several months away from acquiring enriched uranium sufficient to produce a nuclear weapon, the official said.
Washington continues to bet on diplomatic methods, the official said but warned that if the Vienna negotiations fail, there are other options to prevent Tehran from obtaining nuclear weapons.
