The Interim Deal of November 2013 between the P5+1 and Iran, although only meant to stop the clock and provide time for the real negotiation on a comprehensive deal, is now hailed as a “landmark deal.” The P5+1 are no longer demanding that Iran back away from its military ambitions; they are not even pressing for the weaponization aspects to be confronted head-on and quickly. Rather, they are demonstrating a relatively lax attitude on that front, while quietly shifting the goal of the negotiation from an Iranian strategic U-turn in the nuclear realm to an attempt to ensure that enough time – 6 months, a year, or maybe 18 months – remains between the current situation and the possibility for Iran to break out to a bomb. This assumes amazing verification capabilities that are far from given.
