Contrary to hints made a few hours earlier by French Foreign Minister Jean-Yves Le Drian, EU foreign policy chief Josep Borrell confirmed that ministers from Britain, China, France, Germany, and Russia will not hold a meeting with Iran on the sidelines of this week's annual gathering of world leaders at the United Nations.
He stated, according to Reuters, "The important thing is not to hold this ministerial meeting, but the desire of all parties to resume negotiations in Vienna," noting that he will meet with Iran’s new foreign minister, Hossein Amir-Abdollahian, on Tuesday.
Le Drian announced yesterday that the 4+1 ministers would meet with Iran at the UN later this week to attempt to give momentum to the currently stalled talks aimed at reviving the 2015 nuclear deal.
He emphasized the need to resume negotiations, considering that time is running out for reaching a possible agreement. He said, "We need to seize this week to resume these discussions." Additionally, he added, "Iran must accept to return as soon as possible by appointing its representatives to the negotiations."
It is notable that the new British Foreign Secretary Liz Truss is scheduled to meet her Iranian counterpart Amir-Abdollahian in New York on the sidelines of the UN General Assembly.
The British minister stated yesterday, "The UK and our international partners are committed to the nuclear deal, but each day Iran delays the talks while escalating its nuclear program means less room for diplomatic efforts."
It is worth mentioning that talks between Tehran and Western countries, with indirect participation from Washington, halted last June after six rounds, following the election of Ebrahim Raisi, a hardline conservative, as President of Iran. Previous rounds of discussions that began in April 2021 did not succeed in bringing Tehran and Washington back into compliance with the nuclear agreement from which former U.S. President Donald Trump withdrew in 2018, reinstating severe sanctions on Iran.
