After a meeting in Geneva that was the first fruit of President Obama’s policy of engagement on Iran comes a new encounter in Vienna. The meeting with Iran in the Austrian capital Monday is technical, with the goal of getting enriched uranium shipped out of the Islamic Republic. It is also an “Audacity of Hope” moment in foreign diplomacy, a potentially transformative development which few expected and most doubt is possible. The Iranians agreed, in principle, in Geneva on October 1 to send uranium that can be used to make atom bombs to a safe place outside of the country. This would reduce the threat that Iran could use the uranium for a nuclear weapon and give time for non-proliferation talks. The question Monday is: Will the deal go forward, collapse, or perhaps what is worse, die of a thousand cuts as it is delayed?
Diplomats say they expect a firm decision in Vienna, where the meeting joining the United States, Russia, France, and Iran, under the auspices of the UN watchdog International Atomic Energy Agency, starts in mid-afternoon. Yet there is no deadline for decision-making. The goal is to get in writing what was promised in Geneva. Details can come later. As for the timing of the actual shipments, France would like to see all the uranium out of Iran by the end of the year. But such ambitions might not be met. The end result could be that shipping only starts at year’s end.
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