In Vienna, indications are growing that an agreement on the Iranian nuclear program is near, under which the agreement concluded between Iran and world powers in 2015, known as the Joint Comprehensive Plan of Action, will be revived.

French Foreign Minister Jean-Yves Le Drian said on Wednesday that only days were left for a decision on reviving the nuclear agreement between Iran and world powers, and that the agreement was "steps away".

"We have now reached a decisive point. It is not a question of weeks, but of days," the French minister told his country's parliament, noting that Western powers, Russia and China agreed on the broad outlines of the agreement.

"The Iranians are required to take political decisions. Either they will be the cause of a serious crisis in the coming days, or they will agree to the agreement that respects the interests of all parties," he added.

For his part, the Chinese delegate to the negotiations, Wang Qun, said that the talks are in their final stage and are steps away from the final agreement.


Shuttle moves

Indirect talks between Iran and the United States on reviving the nuclear deal resumed last week, after a 10-day hiatus.

Officials from the other parties to the agreement, Britain, France, Germany and Russia, have been shuttling between the two sides in an effort to bridge the gaps.

Western diplomats have previously indicated that they hope for a breakthrough for now, but difficult issues remain.

Iran refuses to set any deadline imposed by the Western powers.

The agreement began to unravel in 2018 when then-US President Donald Trump withdrew from it and reimposed severe sanctions on Iran, which then began to unwind from restrictions on its uranium enrichment activities.


An invitation to be realistic

In the same context, Iranian Foreign Minister Hossein Amir Abdollahian said that Tehran adheres to a "nuclear agreement with guarantees", and called on Washington to show its goodwill by releasing part of Iran's money or lifting some sanctions before any talk of direct negotiations with it.

In turn, the chief Iranian negotiator, Ali Bagheri-Kani, responded to Le Drian's statements, calling on Western powers to "be realistic, avoid stubbornness, and draw lessons from the past four years."

"It's time for serious decisions on their part," he said on Twitter.

He went on to say, "After weeks of intense talks, we are closer than ever to reaching an agreement," but added, "There is no agreement on anything unless everything is agreed upon."

The chief Iranian negotiator made it clear that the negotiations have reached a stage in which all parties must make their own decisions.

For his part, US State Department spokesman Ned Price said that the United States is in the final stages of indirect talks with Iran to return to the nuclear deal.

He described the talks as being at the critical stage to determine the fate of returning to the agreement.

"We are sincere and decisive in our efforts to test whether mutual returns can be achieved," Price said. "We continue to believe it is the best way to impose permanent, verifiable restrictions on Iran's nuclear programme."


Visit to South Korea

In a related context, the South Korean Foreign Ministry announced the visit of an Iranian economic delegation to Seoul, while Bloomberg Agency considered this visit Iran's first steps to return to the oil market if sanctions are lifted.

The website of the South Korean Foreign Ministry stated that the delegation includes officials from the Central Bank, the Ministry of Oil and the National Iranian Oil Company.

The two sides discussed a number of issues, including frozen Iranian funds, and the export of Iranian crude oil to Korea if sanctions are lifted.

It is noteworthy that before the sanctions, South Korea was a major customer of Iranian light crude, and its oil buyers imported mainly condensate, a very light type of crude oil from Iran.

Tehran has repeatedly demanded the release of about $7 billion in funds frozen in South Korean banks under US sanctions, saying Seoul is holding the funds "hostage".

In Tehran, Foreign Ministry spokesman Saeed Khatibzadeh said Iran views the talks as a possible indication of attempts to re-establish trade ties with South Korea.