Iranian Foreign Minister Abbas Aragchi and his colleagues from France, Great Britain and Germany agreed on Friday to continue negotiations on Iran’s nuclear program next week, Iranian state media reported.
Three European powers are threatening to reactivate UN sanctions against Tehran if it does not return to talks aimed at curbing its disputed uranium enrichment program.
German Foreign Minister Johann Wadephul confirmed that talks would take place next week and warned Iran that sanctions would be reinstated if it did not reach a sustainable and controllable deal to address concerns about its nuclear ambitions. He reiterated that there is still very little time left and that Iran must be very committed to negotiations.
Iranian state media reported that Aragchi and his European counterparts agreed during a telephone conversation that the deputy foreign ministers would continue negotiations on Tuesday.
During the conversation, Aragçi stressed that those countries have no legal or moral right to return the sanctions to him and warned that such a move would have consequences, Iranian media reported.
European powers and the US claim that Iran could develop nuclear weapons, which it denies and claims that it only wants civilian nuclear energy.
The International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) has asserted that Iran is not close to developing a nuclear bomb, and US intelligence director Tulsi Gabbard testified in March that intelligence experts have found no evidence that Iran is progressing toward nuclear weapons.
Iran suspended nuclear talks with the US after the US and Israel bombed its nuclear facilities during the 12-day war.
IAEA inspectors have been unable to access Iran’s nuclear facilities since then.
Iran and the three European powers last met in Geneva on June 20, while the war was still going on and there were no signs of progress.
Iranian state television said an Iranian delegation was scheduled to travel to Vienna on Friday for a meeting with IAEA officials, without giving any other details.
