TEHRAN(Bazaar) – Robert Y. Shapiro, professor and former chair of the Department of Political Science at Columbia University says the Biden administration is being cautious and Iran would have to be more conciliatory and cooperative.
Following is the text of the Bazaar interview with Robert Y. Shapiro.
Q: The issue of prisoner exchange between Iran and the United States was carried out. Will this have an impact on the revival of the JCPOA?
It cannot hurt the possibility of revitalizing the JCPOA. But Iran will have to be more conciliatory and cooperative since Biden took a great deal of criticism on the exchange.
Q: Washington has announced that it does not consider the prisoner exchange agreement with Iran a confidence-building step between the two countries. What is your assessment of this issue?
I think the Biden administration is being cautious hers and, again, Iran would have to be more conciliatory and cooperative.
Q: President Biden announced in a statement after this exchange that the US will continue to impose costs on Iran for its provocative actions in the region. Could this message mean to remove his government from the internal pressures that condemned him to pay ransom to Iran regarding the release of Iran’s blocked funds?
Yes, I think that is what motivated the message at least in part. Biden and his team were heavily criticized by the domestic opposition for the issue of prisoner exchange between the two countries, and the political situation in Washington should be stabilized in this regard.
Q: What effect will this agreement have on Biden’s presidential campaign?
No effect since his voters/ views of the exchange will be consistent with whether they currently support Biden or not; I do not think it will have much persuasive effect in changing people’s minds about Biden.
Q: Qatar has expressed hope that this agreement will open the way to solve other issues between Iran and America. Considering the success of this country in this agreement, how likely is Doha to continue this mediation in the field of the nuclear agreement?
I think this is a continuing possibility if both sides continue to talk
