Unravelling the P5+1's Splendid Agreement

"We will not sign any agreement unless all economic sanctions are totally lifted on the first day of the implementation of the deal."

"[The punitive] sanctions should be lifted completely, on the very day of the deal."

"[The six world powers are] not to be trusted [and may try] to limit Iran [in further talks]."

"[Iranian negotiators are not to accept any] unconventional inspections [of Iran’s nuclear facilities;  inspection of military facilities would not be permitted]."

"Nothing has been done yet. What has happened so far neither guarantees a deal… nor does it guarantee the content of a deal. It doesn’t even guarantee the talks will go on until the end and will lead to a deal."

"If the other side refrains from its normal bad actions, this will become an experience that we can continue on other issues. If we see that once again they repeat their bad actions, it will only strengthen our experience of not trusting America."
Supreme leader Ali Khamenei

Ayatollah Ali Khamenei of Iran said on Thursday that he neither accepts nor rejects the framework nuclear deal reached between Iran and world powers last week.

By Reuters on Publish Date April 9, 2015. Photo by Office of the Supreme Leader.

Military sites in Iran are to be strictly off limits to any kind of inspection. Hear that? IAEA? "No way, we should not allow them to infiltrate security and defensive installations", Ayatollah Ali Khamenei said, clearly placing the very idea of compromise into the realm of the impossible. He also highlighted his suspicion of the "inexperienced youngsters" now leading in Riyadh, Saudi Arabia, who had the unmitigated gall of leading a move to round up Arab League members in the formation of a regional Arabic defence force.

Defence force? Against whom, pray tell? So glad you asked, Supreme Leader. Read the declaration out of the latest of the Arab League meetings; the Islamic Republic of Iran is not held in the high regard Tehran insists it should occupy in the fond opinion of its neighbours who appear not to relish the thought of Iranian command over the Middle East. All the more so when contemplating an Iran on the military offensive equipped with nuclear arms.

"We will not sign any agreement unless all economic sanctions are totally lifted on the first day of the implementation of the deal" repeated Iranian president Hassan Rouhani, emphasizing his complete accord with the Grand Ayatollah. As how could he do otherwise; the moderate president and the moderately terrorist-supporting mullahs of Iran think and act as with one mind. They are uniformly minded to achieve their aspirations, interfering West be damned.

Though Iran must  honour its commitments to vastly reduce its stockpile of enriched uranium, and decommission centrifuges by placing them in verifiable storage, insists the P5+1, for the sanctions to be fully lifted. And, of course, permit full and free passage to the IAEA inspectors whose critical work in affirming that the Republic has indeed made good on its promises, remains part of the initial agreement.

It's just that, goodness gracious, what Russia, China, America, France, Britain and Germany took away as their understanding of the agreed-upon points comprising the framework for further negotiations on a June 30 deal doesn't match one iota what the Iranian negotiators preferred to interpret as benefiting their side of the arrangement; and it is their understanding of the situation that they agreed to, not what the Security Council members and Germany think Iran has agreed to.

As in oops! An obvious case of miscommunication, of each side hearing what they preferred to hear, and signing on to what they felt most benefited their cause. And a meeting of minds did not,  unfortunately, take place.