BERLIN/PARIS/TEHRAN: France and Germany on Wednesday urged Iran to return rapidly to nuclear negotiations, after a break in talks following Iranian elections in June, with Paris demanding an “immediate” restart amid Western concerns over Tehran’s expanding atomic work.
France’s foreign minister Jean-Yves Le Drian told his newly-appointed Iranian counterpart Hossein Amirabdollahian in a telephone call it was urgent for Tehran to return to the talks, Le Drian’s ministry said in a statement.
“We are not seeking to flee the negotiation table,” said Amirabdollahian during an interview broadcast on Tuesday evening by state television, “The ... government considers a real negotiation is a negotiation that produces palpable results allowing the rights of the Iranian nation to be guaranteed.”
The Vienna talks are “one of the questions on the foreign policy and government agenda,” he said.
But “the other party knows full well that a process of two to three months is required for the new government to establish itself and to start taking decisions.”
A sixth round of indirect talks between Tehran and Washington was adjourned in June after hard-liner Ebrahim Raisi was elected Iran’s president. Raisi took office on August 5.
Since April, Iran and six powers have tried to work out how Tehran and Washington can both return to compliance with the nuclear pact, which former US President Donald Trump abandoned in 2018 and reimposed harsh sanctions on Tehran.
“The minister underlined the importance and the urgency of an immediate resumption of negotiations,” the foreign ministry said after the conversation between the diplomats.
Le Drian repeated his concern with regard to all the nuclear activities carried out by Iran in violation of the 2015 nuclear deal with world powers. Iran has gradually violated limits in the agreement since Washington abandoned it in 2018.
The next round of talks has yet to be scheduled.
Two senior Iranian officials told Reuters in July Raisi planned to adopt “a harder line” in the talks.
Germany earlier also raised pressure on Tehran asking it to resume talks “as soon as possible.”
“We are ready to do so, but the time window won’t be open indefinitely,” a ministry spokesperson told a briefing.
Last month, France, Germany and Britain voiced grave concern about reports from the UN nuclear watchdog confirming Iran has produced uranium metal enriched up to 20 percent fissile purity for the first time and lifted production capacity of uranium enriched to 60 percent. Iran denies seeking nuclear weapons.
