Iran says next round of nuclear talks with US to be held in Rome
Negotiations scheduled for Saturday; officials from Britain, France, and Germany to meet with Iranians the day before, also in Italian capital
TEHRAN, Iran — Iran said Wednesday that the next round of negotiations with the United States over its rapidly advancing nuclear program will be in Rome on Saturday.
Iranian Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi made the comment on the sidelines of a Cabinet meeting, adding that Iran also anticipated having a meeting Friday with France, Germany, and the United Kingdom to discuss the talks.
The talks with the US again will be mediated by Oman. The sultanate has hosted two rounds of talks in Oman’s capital, Muscat, and one round at its embassy in Rome.
The talks seek to limit Iran’s nuclear program in exchange for the lifting of some of the crushing economic sanctions the US has imposed on the Islamic Republic, closing in on a half-century of enmity.
US President Donald Trump has repeatedly threatened to unleash airstrikes targeting Iran’s program if a deal isn’t reached. Iranian officials increasingly warn that they could pursue a nuclear weapon with their stockpile of uranium enriched to near weapons-grade levels.
Two diplomatic sources confirmed to Reuters that French, British, and German political directors will meet with Iran on Friday in Rome.
Iran is looking to build on the momentum of nuclear negotiations with the US that resumed in Oman on Saturday, and talks with Russia and China last week.
The moves by Iran to reach out to Britain, France, and Germany – known as the E3 – suggest Tehran is keeping its options open, but also wants to assess where the Europeans stand on the possible re-imposition of UN sanctions before October, when a resolution ratifying the 2015 accord expires.
However, Iran’s UN mission slammed “threats” by France to reimpose sanctions lifted under the 2015 deal, media in the Islamic Republic reported.
France on Monday said that along with Germany and Britain, it “will not hesitate for a single second to reapply all the sanctions” scrapped a decade ago if European security is threatened by Iran’s nuclear activities.
“Resorting to threats and economic blackmail is entirely unacceptable,” Iran’s mission to the UN said in a letter carried by the country’s ISNA news agency.
France, Germany, and Britain, along with China and Russia, are parties to the 2015 nuclear agreement with Iran, which the US withdrew from three years later during Trump’s first term in office.
The so-called Joint Comprehensive Plan of Action gave Iran sanctions relief in exchange for curbs on its nuclear program intended to prevent it from obtaining a bomb. After the US pulled out, Iran ramped up operations, enriching uranium to levels and stocks beyond the deal’s limits.
Under the agreement, the parties can trigger the “snapback” mechanism, which would automatically reinstate UN sanctions on Iran over its non-compliance, an option that expires in October.
Araghchi said last week he was willing to visit Germany, France, and Britain for talks.
The Iranian UN mission said in its letter that “genuine diplomacy cannot proceed under threats or pressure.”
“If France and its partners are truly interested in a diplomatic resolution, they must abandon coercion,” it said.
Longtime foes Iran and the US have been engaged since April 12 in their highest-level talks in years targeting a new deal that would stop Tehran from developing nuclear weapons.
Iran, which openly seeks Israel’s destruction, denies seeking nuclear arms, but has accelerated production of 60%-enriched uranium, an enrichment rate far above what is needed for civilian uses and a short technical step from weapons-grade uranium. It also continues to develop its ballistic missile capabilities.
On Sunday, Trump sounded optimistic about the talks, telling the media, “on the Iran situation, I think we’re doing very well. I think a deal is going to be made there. It’s going to happen. Pretty sure it’s going to happen.”
It was unclear, however, exactly how much Israel’s position aligns with that of the US. Speaking to reporters, also on Sunday, Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu called for Iran’s entire nuclear infrastructure to be dismantled.
At the Jewish News Syndicate policy conference in Jerusalem, Netanyahu stressed that Tehran could not be allowed to continue enriching uranium. As far as Israel is concerned, he said, “a real deal that works is one that removes Iran’s capacity to enrich uranium for nuclear weapons.”
The Times of Israel Community.