Iranian nuclear power: EU denies meeting with Iran on Thursday

Published on : 10/18/2021 – 15:52

After Tehran announced the arrival of Iranian negotiator Ali Baghéri, the spokesperson for the head of European diplomacy told AFP on Monday (October 18th) that no meeting was scheduled with the Iranians on Thursday in Brussels on the issue. relaunch of nuclear talks.

“There will be no meeting on Thursday,” spokeswoman Nabila Massrali said. “At this point we cannot confirm if and when a meeting will be held,” she added.

The update of Josep Borrell’s services follows the announcement by the Iranian Foreign Ministry that Iranian negotiator Ali Baghéri will come to Brussels on Thursday “to discuss the issues that remained unanswered after his talks with the European negotiator. Enrique Mora “.

The EU urges the Iranians to resume negotiations initiated in Vienna to save the nuclear deal concluded in 2015. They have been suspended since the election in June of the new Iranian president, Ebrahim Raïssi.

“Things are improving. I hope we will have preparatory meetings in Brussels in the days to come. But I cannot be sure,” Josep Borrell said on Monday morning, shortly before a meeting with business ministers foreigners from the EU in Luxembourg.

Resume talks as soon as possible

“The Iranians are not yet ready to resume talks in Vienna,” said a European official. “However, the objective is that they resume as quickly as possible”, he underlined.

The Iranians “want clarifications on the text that is on the table (in Vienna) and bilateral contacts with some of the signatory countries,” he said.

US President Joe Biden has said he is ready to return to the agreement reached between Iran and the great powers in 2015, provided that Iran simultaneously renews its commitments.

The United States has raised the tone against Tehran and raised the threat of a military option against Iran last week if diplomacy fails to prevent Tehran from acquiring atomic weapons , purpose of the 2015 agreement.

The agreement concluded between Iran on the one hand and the United States, the United Kingdom, China, Russia, France and Germany on the other, offered Tehran the lifting of part of the international sanctions in exchange for a drastic reduction in its nuclear program, placed under strict UN control.

After the unilateral withdrawal of the Americans from the agreement in 2018 under the presidency of Donald Trump, Tehran gradually abandoned its commitments. The United States in turn imposed sanctions.

With AFP