Iran clearly wants a nuclear deal. Does Biden?
![President Biden and Ebrahim Raisi.](https://cdn.mos.cms.futurecdn.net/VfPRD92mnz7CHJjaRU9XoS-415-80.jpg)
If Iran doesn't come back to the nuclear deal, it will probably be America's fault.
We know this because Iran announced Wednesday it will rejoin talks to revive the 2015 agreement, under which Tehran curbed its development of atomic technologies in exchange for the lifting of economic sanctions. The news is something of a surprise: The election of hard-liner Ebrahim Raisi, who won the presidency in June, had diminished hopes that the U.S. and Iran might finally come to an agreement. Apparently there's still hope.
Now it's President Biden's turn to make a good-faith effort to restore the deal. The question is whether he will take advantage of the opportunity.
Subscribe to The Week
Escape your echo chamber. Get the facts behind the news, plus analysis from multiple perspectives.
![https://cdn.mos.cms.futurecdn.net/flexiimages/jacafc5zvs1692883516.jpg](https://cdn.mos.cms.futurecdn.net/flexiimages/jacafc5zvs1692883516-320-80.jpg)
Sign up for The Week's Free Newsletters
From our morning news briefing to a weekly Good News Newsletter, get the best of The Week delivered directly to your inbox.
From our morning news briefing to a weekly Good News Newsletter, get the best of The Week delivered directly to your inbox.
It's hard to say. Biden sensibly campaigned last year on a pledge to re-engage Iran, but he's done a bafflingly lousy job of following through. In February, the administration rejected a proposal in which the U.S. and Iran would simultaneously re-enter the nuclear agreement; America would ease back sanctions while Iran resumed compliance. Instead, the White House essentially told Iran: "You first." (That was audacious, considering that the original deal had been scuttled for no good reason by the United States under then-President Donald Trump in 2018.) Rather than accept those unbalanced terms, Iran chose to keep growing its stockpile of enriched uranium, an activity Tehran resumed a year after Trump's exit, though it still doesn't have enough to make a bomb.
This has led the United States — along with Israel — to make increasingly belligerent sounds toward Iran. Earlier this month, Secretary of State Antony Blinken and Israeli Foreign Minister Yair Lapid discussed the possibility of a "Plan B" option if the nuclear deal isn't resurrected. They left the details unmentioned, but it seemed clear the plan would involve some level of military or covert action against Iran's nuclear facilities. "If a terror regime is going to acquire a nuclear weapon we must act," Lapid said. "We must make clear that the civilized world won't allow it."
That's no surprise: Hawks in the U.S. and Israel have seemed positively eager for war with Iran for much of the last 20 years. But bluster and threats have mostly produced pushback from Tehran; the Obama administration diplomacy that produced the original deal was probably the biggest success America and its allies have had in restraining Iran's nuclear ambitions. The country's willingness to return to the negotiating table suggests Iran would prefer a revived agreement — peace — to continued sanctions or war.
Biden has said that's what he wants, too. Here's his chance to prove it.
Create an account with the same email registered to your subscription to unlock access.
Sign up for Today's Best Articles in your inbox
A free daily email with the biggest news stories of the day – and the best features from TheWeek.com
Joel Mathis is a writer with 30 years of newspaper and online journalism experience. His work also regularly appears in National Geographic and The Kansas City Star. His awards include best online commentary at the Online News Association and (twice) at the City and Regional Magazine Association.
-
Why is China stockpiling resources?
The Explainer The superpower has been amassing huge reserves of commodities at great cost despite its economic downturn
By Richard Windsor, The Week UK Published
-
Paraguay's dangerous dalliance with cryptocurrency
Under The Radar Overheating Paraguayans are pushing back over power outages caused by illegal miners
By Chas Newkey-Burden, The Week UK Published
-
The Week contest: Tattoo prediction
Puzzles and Quizzes
By The Week US Published
-
How Biden's enablers may have delayed his bowing out
Talking Points Joe Biden's inner circle faces calls for a reckoning for allegedly shielding the president — and the public — from questions of aging and electoral viability
By Rafi Schwartz, The Week US Published
-
The Democrats 'resigned to a second Trump presidency'
Talking Points Did the assassination attempt end Biden's election chances?
By Joel Mathis, The Week US Published
-
How could J.D. Vance impact the special relationship?
Today's Big Question Trump's hawkish pick for VP said UK is the first 'truly Islamist country' with a nuclear weapon
By Harriet Marsden, The Week UK Published
-
Are down-ticket Democrats doomed?
Talking Points President Joe Biden's refusal to step back from his reelection campaign has some local Democrats wondering if their own races are in trouble — but not everyone is worried
By Rafi Schwartz, The Week US Published
-
Biden, Trump urge calm after assassination attempt
Speed Reads A 20-year-old gunman grazed Trump's ear and fatally shot a rally attendee on Saturday
By Peter Weber, The Week US Published
-
Why Project 2025 is creating headaches for the Trump campaign
Talking Points Democrats want to make Trump 'own' the controversial plan
By Joel Mathis, The Week US Published
-
Biden flopped, but did Trump really 'win' the debate?
Talking Points The president struggled to articulate a clear vision for the country, but Trump's cavalcade of aggressive falsehoods might not do the Republican candidate any favors in the long run
By Rafi Schwartz, The Week US Published
-
Why the Hunter Biden verdict isn't the slam dunk Republicans have been calling for
Talking Points After years of targeting the President's family amidst claims of a rigged justice system, some conservatives still aren't satisfied with the younger Biden's three felony convictions.
By Rafi Schwartz, The Week US Published