Expert level talks signal progress but no imminent deal – AP opinion

Negotiations between Iran and the United States over Tehran's rapidly advancing nuclear program will move to the expert level on Wednesday, a development analysts suggest indicates the talks are progressing swiftly, according to an Associated Press opinion.

However, experts not directly involved in the discussions cautioned the AP that this step does not necessarily mean a deal is on the horizon. Instead, it shows that the initial high-level discussions between Iranian Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi and US Mideast envoy Steve Witkoff have not collapsed over the core issue: Tehran limiting its atomic program in exchange for the lifting of economic sanctions.

Kelsey Davenport, the director for nonproliferation policy at the Arms Control Association, told the AP that "agreeing to technical talks suggests both sides are expressing pragmatic, realistic objectives for the negotiations and want to explore the details." She added that Iran would likely not engage at the technical level if Washington presented maximalist demands like the dismantling of its enrichment program.

Richard Nephew, an adjunct fellow at the Washington Institute for Near East Policy, who previously worked on Iran sanctions at the US State Department, told the AP that the value of expert talks hinges on an existing commitment to do something, with experts tasked with determining the specifics. Without such political agreement, he warned, the expert discussions could be unproductive.

The AP opinion also talked about the crucial role of technical experts in the 2015 nuclear deal, citing the understanding reached between then-US Energy Secretary Ernest Moniz and Ali Akbar Salehi of the Atomic Energy Organization of Iran.