Time out

AFTER some unconvincing last-minute brinkmanship, Iran and the six world powers it is negotiating with decided on July 18th to extend the deadline for an agreement by four months. The negotiators, seeking to secure a deal to curb Iran’s nuclear programme in exchange for the removal of sanctions, are taking a break until September. Then they have until November 24th, exactly a year after the signing of the “joint plan of action” that first set the ball rolling, to find a permanent solution.

In the meantime, the provisions of the six-month interim deal that came into force on January 20th (and which confounded critics who feared it would undermine the sanctions regime) will stay in place with a few minor tweaks. Iran will take another step towards neutralising its stockpile of 20%-enriched uranium by turning the uranium-oxide powder (into which it has already been converted) into fuel plates for a research reactor. In return, Iran will continue to get very limited relief on some lesser sanctions and another $700m a month from frozen bank accounts abroad.