Tehran (AFP)

President Hassan Rohani called Tuesday the United States to "take the first step", lifting all sanctions imposed on Iran on the nuclear issue, in reaction to the words of US President Donald Trump deemed realistic a meeting with the leader Iranian.

Tensions between Trump's US and the Islamic Republic have been exacerbated in recent months, following the US unilateral withdrawal from the 2015 Iran International Nuclear Agreement, followed by Washington's reinstatement of strong sanctions against Tehran .

A slight easing however appeared on the occasion of the G7 summit in recent days in France, Donald Trump does not reject the principle of a meeting with his Iranian counterpart.

Commenting on this announcement, however, Hassan Rohani has, in turn, set conditions.

The first "step is to withdraw the sanctions.You must withdraw all illegal, unjust and erroneous sanctions against the Iranian nation," said Tuesday morning Mr. Rohani in a speech broadcast on state TV.

"The key to a positive change is in the hands of Washington," because Iran has already ruled out doing what worries the United States the most: the making of an atomic bomb, "said the Iranian president.

"If, honestly, this is your only concern, it has already been ruled out" by a fatwa issued by Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei, he said.

- "Circumstances" -

The recent upsurge of tensions between Iran and the United States, with mysterious attacks on ships in the strategic Gulf region, drones shot down and tankers seized, has led to fear of uncontrollable escalation, while the record on the nuclear power poisons international relations.

But to the question "Is it realistic that you meet Mr. Rohani in the coming weeks?", Asked Monday by the press in closing of the G7, Donald Trump answered in the affirmative.

Trump, who had flagrantly denounced the Iranian nuclear deal and has since exercised "maximum pressure" on Iran, nevertheless conditioned such a meeting: that the "circumstances" be met.

The day before, the French president Emmnauel Macron, who leads an active mediation for a de-escalation, had signed a diplomatic coup by inviting the head of Iranian diplomacy, Mohammad Javad Zarif, to Biarritz.

At a press conference at the G7 Biarritz, Macron said that the discussions at the summit had created "the conditions for a meeting and therefore an agreement" between the US and Iranian presidents.

He hoped that this meeting could be organized "in the coming weeks". "Nothing is done, things are eminently fragile," he warned.

In Tehran, President Rohani said on Monday open to dialogue, despite criticism of the regime's hard wing on the visit of his foreign minister in France --Mr. Zarif, however, did not meet any American official during this short stop in Biarritz.

- "Photo break" -

"Take the first step," hammered President Rohani on Tuesday. "Without this step, the lock will not be unlocked," he warned, during the speech delivered during the inauguration of a real estate project in Tehran.

The Vienna nuclear deal was based on a lifting of sanctions against Iran in exchange for Iran's commitment not to acquire nuclear weapons.

But after the reestablishment of heavy US sanctions largely affecting the Islamic Republic's economy, Tehran has retaliated by breaking commitments under the agreement, and threatens to continue to undermine it if it does not succeed. counterparties.

Europeans try to convince Donald Trump to loosen sanctions on Iranian oil in exchange for Tehran's return to compliance with its commitments and the opening of negotiations to strengthen the Vienna agreement and frame the ballistic program Iranian.

In his Tuesday speech, Rohani again urged the United States to "return to the commitments" made by Barack Obama's administration as part of the nuclear deal.

"We are trying to solve problems in a rational way, but we are not looking for + photo breaks." For anyone who wants to take a photo with Hassan Rohani, this is not possible, "he said.

The possible meeting between Rohani and Trump was denounced as "an opportunity for a photo break" on Tuesday in the front page of the Javan newspaper, close to the Iranian Revolutionary Guards.

Messrs. Rohani and Trump are expected to be in New York for the UN General Assembly in late September, which could be a milestone for the talks being discussed.

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© 2019 AFP