Ahead of new talks, Iran blames Europeans for nuclear deal collapse
But it unravelled in 2018 when the United States, during Donald Trump's first term as president, unilaterally withdrew from the accord and reimposed sweeping sanctions.
The Europeans had pledged continued support for the deal, but the mechanism intended to offset US sanctions never materialised effectively and many Western firms were forced to exit Iran, which has since faced a deepening economic crisis.
"The European parties have been at fault and negligent in implementing" the nuclear agreement, said Iranian foreign ministry spokesman Esmail Baqaei.
His remarks come ahead of a meeting Friday in Istanbul between Iranian officials and representatives from Britain, France and Germany to discuss the future of the nuclear deal.
Ahead of those talks, Baqaei said Tehran would host a trilateral meeting on Tuesday about the nuclear issue and the potential reimposition of sanctions with Chinese and Russian representatives.
In recent weeks, the three European powers have threatened to trigger the UN "snapback" mechanism to reimpose international sanctions on Tehran, accusing it of breaching its nuclear commitments.
A German diplomatic source had told AFP on Sunday the E3 were in contact with Tehran and said "Iran must never be allowed to acquire a nuclear weapon".
"That is why Germany, France and the United Kingdom are continuing to work intensively in the E3 format to find a sustainable and verifiable diplomatic solution to the Iranian nuclear programme," the source said.
'No intention of speaking with America'
The International Atomic Energy Agency says Iran is the only non-nuclear-armed country currently enriching uranium to 60 percent -- far beyond the 3.67 percent cap set by the 2015 accord.
That is a short step from the 90 percent enrichment required for a nuclear weapon.
Using the snapback clause was "meaningless, unjustifiable and immoral", Baqaei told a news conference, arguing that Iran only began distancing itself from the agreement in response to Western non-compliance.
"Iran's reduction of its commitments was carried out in accordance with the provisions outlined in the agreement," he said.
Western powers -- led by the United States and backed by Israel, Iran's arch-enemy -- have long accused Tehran of secretly seeking nuclear weapons capability.
Iran has repeatedly denied this, insisting its nuclear programme is solely for civilian purposes such as energy production.
Tehran and Washington had held five rounds of nuclear talks since April, but a planned meeting on June 15 was cancelled after Israel launched a military strike on Iran on June 13, triggering a 12-day conflict.
"At this stage, we have no intention of speaking with America," Baqaei said Monday.
Israel launched on June 13 a wave of surprise strikes on its regional nemesis, targeting key military and nuclear facilities.
The United States launched its own set of strikes against Iran's nuclear programme on June 22, hitting the uranium enrichment facility at Fordo, in Qom province south of Tehran, as well as nuclear sites in Isfahan and Natanz.
Hashtags
Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles
France 24
22 minutes ago
- France 24
Banned Russian media sites 'still accessible' across EU: report
After Russia invaded Ukraine in February 2022, EU authorities banned Kremlin-controlled media from transmitting in the bloc, including online, to counter "disinformation". But more than three years on, "sanctioned outlets are largely still active and accessible" across member states, said a report released by the Institute for Strategic Dialogue (ISD), a London-based think tank. "Russian state media continues to maintain a strong online presence, posing a persistent challenge to Western democracies," the report said, with blocks imposed by internet service providers "largely ineffective". EU sanctions banned RT, previously known as Russia Today, and Sputnik media organisations, as well as other state-controlled channels, news agencies and newspapers accused of "information warfare". EU member states are each responsible for ensuring blocks are applied by internet service providers (ISPs). But the ISD report criticised the European Commission for its "failure" to maintain a "definitive list of different domain iterations" -- or website addresses -- used by each sanctioned entity. It said this left countries and internet service providers "without the guidance needed for effective and targeted implementation". The report says it identified 26 media entities under sanctions -- but these had 58 different internet domains. The ISD urged the European Commission to provide a "continuously updated and publicly accessible list" of all relevant domains and include it in sanctions packages and on its online sanctions dashboard to speed up enforcement. The report covered Germany, France, Italy, Poland, the Czech Republic and Slovakia, testing the three most popular internet service providers in each. Russia has sought to circumvent sanctions by using various tactics, including mirror sites with different addresses and a network of websites masquerading as Western media, known as Pravda, that targets chatbots to reach a wider audience, according to researchers. The ISD urged the EU to monitor social media activity of sanctioned entities and track other pro-Russian accounts. Its report found that Slovakia -- whose Prime Minister Robert Fico is known for his pro-Russia position -- "performed the worst in terms of enforcement" with all sanctioned domains accessible in tests. Slovakia's legal mandates to block pro-Russian websites expired in 2022 after lawmakers failed to extend them. Poland was the second worst with at least 50 domains accessible. France and Germany's internet service providers were most effective, the report found. Most sanctioned domains had little traction -- gaining under a thousand views per month in the EU -- but five domains each had over 50,000 monthly visitors from Germany, the report found.
Euronews
25 minutes ago
- Euronews
At least five killed in Russian strikes on Kharkiv and Zaporizhzhia
At least five people have been killed and 13 injured in Russian strikes overnight on Tuesday that targeted the Kharkiv and Zaporizhzhia regions, days before US President Donald Trump's deadline for Moscow to agree to a truce or face additional tariffs expires. One person was killed in a strike targeting the city of Lozova in the Kharkiv region that hit critical infrastructure, including high-rise buildings and a residential area, the city's mayor said, calling it the "most intense attack" on the town since the beginning of Russia's full-scale invasion in early 2022. "Sadly, people have been injured, including two children. Rescue workers, medics and emergency services are working at the scene. We are documenting the consequences," Serhii Zelenskyi said. Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy said Russia launched a ballistic missile and nearly 50 UAVs against Ukraine, the majority of which were Iranian-made Shaheds and their Russian equivalents. More than 25 hit Lozova in eastern Ukraine, he added. The strikes damaged a railway, including a depot and a station and left parts of the city without electricity. In the Zaporizhzhia region, four people were killed and three injured, according to Governor Ivan Federov. Russia carried out "431 strikes on 16 settlements" in the Zaporizhzhia region, Federov wrote on Telegram, saying the attack struck residential buildings, homes, commercial buildings and warehouses. Zelenskyy said two people were injured in the village of Bilenke. "Once again, the Russian army is hunting civilians in an attempt to terrorise frontline cities and communities," the Ukrainian president added in a post on X. The strikes come as Trump's special envoy Steve Witkoff is set to travel to Russia, days before the end of the deadline for Moscow to reach a ceasefire deal with Ukraine or face significant US tariffs. Trump has ramped up pressure on Russian President Vladimir Putin to agree to a truce as Moscow continues to strike Ukrainian towns and cities, shortening a previous deadline of 50 days to 8 August. Despite this, Russia has continued to strike Ukraine overnight with additional attacks on the Odesa and Sumy regions, Zelenskyy said. "Pressure must be increased, and this will undoubtedly contribute to peace," he stated. "We look forward to meaningful and decisive steps."
France 24
25 minutes ago
- France 24
Eurostar still faces delays as high-speed train travel resumes in northern France
High-speed train travel resumed in northern France on Tuesday after an electrical fault forced the cancellation of Eurostar services and severe delays on others. Seventeen Eurostar trains connecting Paris with London and continental Europe were cancelled on Monday after the fault on an overhead cable on the line in northern France, Eurostar said. The company has cancelled three Paris-London services on Tuesday, according to its schedule. There were still delays on other trains but not as severe as the disruptions endured by passengers on Monday. "The repair work was completed according to schedule, and this morning we are resuming normal traffic on the high-speed line," a spokesperson for French operator SNCF said. Trains that did run on Monday were diverted onto slower routes. It remains unclear what caused the incident on the line between Moussy and Longueil in northern France. The incident was the latest to affect Eurostar during the holiday season at a time when the company has faced criticism over its high prices, especially on the Paris-London route. The theft of cables on train tracks in northern France caused two days of problems in June. SNCF has a majority shareholding in Eurostar, with Belgian railways, Quebec investment fund CDPQ and US fund manager Federated Hermes holding minority stakes.
