European Union foreign policy chief Josep Borrell and Iranian Foreign Minister Hossein Amir Abdollahian discussed in Jordan a return to negotiations aimed at reviving the nuclear deal after months of stalling, while Washington said that the file is not the focus of the US administration now.
The meeting between Borrell and Abdullahian took place on the sidelines of the Baghdad Conference for Cooperation and Partnership in the Dead Sea region in Jordan, amid deteriorating relations between Tehran and the European Union due to this file and the issue of human rights in Iran, in addition to the accusations against Iran of supporting Russia in its war on Ukraine.
Borrell said in a tweet on Twitter that, during the meeting, he stressed the need to stop military support for Russia and what he described as internal repression in Iran.
The European official indicated that he agreed with the Iranian minister on the need to keep communication channels open and restore the 2015 nuclear agreement on the basis of the Vienna negotiations.
For his part, Iranian Foreign Minister Hossein Amir Abdollahian said that his country is ready to reach a result in the Vienna talks based on the draft that was formulated after months of intense negotiations.
Abdullahian said that he stressed during his meeting with Borrell that the other parties should refrain from politicizing this file, adopt constructive positions based on reality, and take the necessary decisions to return to the agreement, as he put it.
The Iranian foreign minister affirmed his country's readiness to complete the negotiations and conclude an agreement, provided that Western countries observe what he described as the red lines and texts announced by Iran.
Talks aimed at returning to the nuclear deal have stalled since last September, as Western powers accuse Iran of making exaggerated demands, including halting IAEA investigations into its nuclear activities, after it appeared on the horizon that all parties were close to reaching an agreement.
Kirby said that Washington is not focusing now on the nuclear agreement with Iran (Reuters)
American position
In Washington, US National Security Council Strategic Communications Coordinator John Kirby said today, Tuesday, that the United States does not expect any progress in the Iranian nuclear deal in the future.
Kirby added in a press briefing that the nuclear agreement with Iran "is not the focus of the US administration now."
The US official welcomed any talks that European allies are conducting with Iran regarding what he called the wide-ranging challenges, but on the other hand, he said that Iran will be held accountable for its support for Russia in killing Ukrainians, as he put it.
He was referring to Western accusations against Iran of providing Russia with drones to use in its war on Ukraine.
Tehran says it supplied the drones to Russia before the war broke out on February 24.
For his part, UN Secretary-General Antonio Guterres warned of the negative repercussions of losing the nuclear agreement between Tehran and the international community.
Meanwhile, a delegation from the International Atomic Energy Agency left Tehran without it being clear whether the two parties had reached a solution regarding the most important outstanding issues.
It is noteworthy that the IAEA said last year that Iran had failed to explain the reason for the existence of traces of uranium that were found in several undeclared sites, which "raises doubts" about the peacefulness of Tehran's nuclear program.