Iran: We Are Back to Square One — and Trust Me, It's Worse Now Than It Was in 2015 — Ernie Moniz

According to a video published by MSNBC News on Thursday, June 18, 2026, former U.S. Secretary of Energy and one of the chief negotiators of the 2015 Iran nuclear framework, Ernest Moniz, has offered a sobering assessment of current nuclear diplomacy with Iran, arguing that negotiations have effectively regressed to a “starting point” that is even more challenging than the situation faced a decade ago.

Moniz made the remarks while commenting on a newly signed Memorandum of Understanding between Washington and Tehran. 

He cautioned that the document should not be viewed as a full-scale nuclear agreement, stressing instead that it primarily focuses on commercial issues such as oil and commodities trade, while leaving core security questions unresolved.

He pointed out that the arrangement does not include any provisions addressing Iran’s ballistic missile programme, drone capabilities, or its backing of regional allied groups, which he described as essential components of any lasting diplomatic settlement.

Reflecting on earlier negotiations under the Obama administration, Moniz explained that the strategy at the time was to address disputes in phases, beginning with the nuclear issue. 

That approach eventually culminated in the 2015 nuclear accord known as the Joint Comprehensive Plan of Action. 

However, he noted that the diplomatic progress achieved under that agreement was later disrupted following the United States’ withdrawal in 2018.

According to him, Iran’s nuclear programme has since advanced significantly, making the current negotiating landscape more complex and less favourable than it was during the original talks.

Moniz summed up his concern by saying, “We are back to square one with a nuclear negotiation, and in a much less propitious place than we were in 2015.”

He further observed that the present diplomatic approach appears to have returned to a gradual, step-by-step framework, where only the nuclear issue is being directly negotiated, while broader regional security concerns remain outside the scope of discussions.