Iranian Foreign Minister Accuses US Of Thwarting Nuclear Diplomacy Between The Two Countries

JAKARTA - Iran's foreign minister, Abbas Araghchi, accused the United States of destabilizing its course of nuclear diplomacy and urging European countries to stop outdated policies relying on threats and pressure.

In a video conference with its counterparts from France, Germany and the UK -- as well as the EU's Head of Foreign Policy -- AragCHI said Washington unilaterally withdrew from the 2015 nuclear deal, known as the Joint Comprehensive Plan of Action (JCPOA), which was previously mediated by the European Union.

Iran's foreign minister said the US had left the negotiating table last month and instead chose to increase military tensions, referring to US airstrikes against a number of Iran's main nuclear facilities.

"The broadcast of new talks is only possible if other parties are ready to agree on a fair, balanced, and mutually beneficial nuclear agreement," wrote Aragghchi in an upload on X reported by ANTARA from Anadolu, Friday, July 18.

Araghchi also stressed that if the European Union and the E3 group -- namely France, Germany and the UK -- want to play a constructive role in talks, they must take action responsibly and rule out measures such as the snapback mechanism,' which according to him has no moral or legal basis.

(Snapback in the context of this news is the automatic recovery of UN sanctions against Iran for violating the nuclear deal).

The provisions of the 'snapback' in the JCPOA allow signatories to reimpose UN sanctions on Iran if the country is proven to have violated the contents of the deal.

The latest report says the three European countries are considering activating this mechanism by the end of August, prompting a wave of criticism from Tehran, including from top Iranian officials.

Last week, Araghchi warned the move would lead to "irreparable damage" in Iran's relations with the three European countries.

Negotiations between Iran and the US were suspended following an Israeli surprise attack on Iran on June 13, which sparked a 12-day war.

The attack comes just two days before the sixth round of negotiations between Tehran and Washington which are planned to take place in Muscat.

Iran accuses the US of involvement in Israeli attacks that killed more than 1,000 people, including top military officials, nuclear scientists, and Iranian civilians.

The US also launched attacks on three locations of Iran's main nuclear facilities spread across several cities.