VIENNA: Diplomats from Germany, United Kingdom (UK) and France held talks with Iran’s Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi at the UN General Assembly on Tuesday to explore final options before sanctions are reinstated on Iran’s nuclear program, German Foreign Minister Johann Wadephul said.
A statement issued on behalf of Iranian Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi acknowledged the meeting, which also involves Kaja Kallas, the foreign policy chief for the European Union.
Wadephul said the three European countries known as the ‘E3’ will continue to negotiate with Iran.
Amid a flurry of diplomatic engagements, Araghchi on Monday also met with Rafael Grossi, director general of the International Atomic Energy Agency, in New York.
Earlier this month, the UN nuclear watchdog and Iran signed an agreement mediated by Egypt to pave the way for resuming cooperation, including on ways of relaunching inspections of Iran’s nuclear facilities.
Iran’s President Masoud Pezeshkian signed a law adopted by his country’s parliament suspending all cooperation with the UN nuclear watchdog, which followed Israel’s 12-day war with Iran in June, during which Israel and the US struck Iranian nuclear sites.
Iran has long insisted its program is peaceful, though Western nations and the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) assess that Tehran had an active nuclear weapons program until 2003.
The process, termed a “snapback” by the diplomats who negotiated it into Iran’s 2015 nuclear deal with world powers was designed to be veto-proof at the UN and could take effect in a month.
The move set a 30-day clock for resumption unless a diplomatic agreement is reached.
European nations have said they would be willing to extend the deadline if Iran resumes direct negotiations with the US over its nuclear program and allows UN nuclear inspectors access to its nuclear sites, and accounts for the more than 400 kilograms of highly enriched uranium the UN watchdog says it has.
If no diplomatic deal is found, the sanctions will automatically "snapback" on September 28.
