SAMARKAND, Uzbekistan: Senior officials from the European Union and Iran spoke up on Friday in defense of the agreement limiting Tehran’s nuclear program, as the pact comes under heavy pressure from US President Donald Trump.
The nuclear deal was “a major achievement of European and international multilateral diplomacy,” EU foreign policy chief Federica Mogherini told a conference in Uzbekistan.
“The European Union will make sure it will continue to be fully implemented by all, in all its parts,” she said.
Trump on Oct. 13 dealt a blow to the pact by refusing to certify that Tehran was complying with the accord, under which Iran agreed to curb its nuclear program in return for relief from economic sanctions. International inspectors said it was complying.
The US Congress has until mid-December to decide whether to reimpose sanctions lifted by the deal.
Iranian Foreign Minister Mohammad Javad Zarif also spoke on Friday at the United Nations-sponsored conference on Central Asian security and development in Samarkand.
“By clinching the nuclear deal and fulfilling all our commitments under the Joint Comprehensive Plan of Action, we have in action proved our compliance with the principle of non-proliferation and nuclear disarmament,” he said, without mentioning Trump directly.
Uzbek thaw
Mogherini said the EU’s ties with ex-Soviet Central Asia were at an all-time high following moves by Uzbekistan’s new government to open up the previously isolated nation.
Mogherini, the first EU foreign policy chief to visit Uzbekistan in four years, met President Shavkat Mirziyoyev as well as foreign ministers of all five Central Asian nations.
Mirziyoyev was elected president last December after the death of his authoritarian predecessor Islam Karimov, who was accused of systematic human rights abuses and whose relations with the West were poor.
Seeking to modernize Uzbekistan’s economy, Mirziyoyev has moved to mend those relations and announced an ambitious reform program at home.
After a “very long and fruitful meeting” with Mirziyoyev, Mogherini said the reforms had the full support of Brussels.
Mirziyoyev has also improved ties with neighboring Kazakhstan, Kyrgyzstan, Tajikistan and Turkmenistan after years of bitter standoffs over matters such as borders and water use, winning further praise from Mogherini.
“I would say that we are at the top of our historical experience of cooperation, but we want to use it not as a target point, but as a starting point,” she said.
EU and Iran defend nuclear deal, under fire from Trump
EU and Iran defend nuclear deal, under fire from Trump
Morocco pushes to reform social security system amid inflation and economic pressure, PM says
- Speaking at the World Economic Forum in Davos, Aziz Akhannouch said his government had expanded healthcare to more than 80 percent of its population
DUBAI: Morocco’s prime minister said on Tuesday that the country was pursuing radical social and economic reforms in the wake of inflationary and economic pressures.
Speaking at the World Economic Forum in Davos, Aziz Akhannouch said his government had expanded healthcare to more than 80 percent of its population, up from just 42 percent when he took office three years ago.
He said this also coincided with consistently strong economic growth and headline inflation reducing to below 1 percent.
“In a world that doubts itself, Morocco has decided to protect its population, reform and look forward,” he told attendees in Davos.
In late 2025, Morocco was rocked by its largest demonstrations in over a decade as youth‑led groups mobilized nationwide against deteriorating public services, deepening social inequality, and chronic unemployment.
Akhannouch said the country was aware of the difficulties facing Moroccans and was determined to ensure the country would remain on a positive trajectory.
Part of this included the provision of financial aid to more than 12 million citizens, and the formation of trusts for orphans to be paid out when they turn 18.
“Health means dignity, if you want to have a decent life you have to have good health,” he said.
Nevertheless, Akhannouch noted that the government had not forgone its budgetary principles — and had in fact balanced the country’s debt payments and achieved successful fiscal reforms. He noted S&P’s decision in 2025 to raise Morocco’s sovereign rating to BBB‑/A‑3 and restore its investment‑grade status.
Speaking on the World Cup, set to be co-hosted with neighbors Spain and Portugal in 2030, he said the project was seen as a nation-building exercise that would help spur Morocco to develop its underlying infrastructure and provide employment opportunities for young Moroccans.
“It will be a growth accelerator,” he said.
“When we build new rail networks and upgrade cities it will have a long-term impact on people.”
