Britain, France, and Germany have urged Iran at the United Nations to meet three key conditions to delay the reimposition of UN sanctions, aiming to create space for negotiations over Tehran’s nuclear programme.
The three countries, collectively known as the E3, issued a joint statement ahead of a closed-door Security Council meeting on Friday, a day after initiating a 30-day process to reimpose UN sanctions on Iran over its contested nuclear activities.
The E3 offered to postpone the snapback of sanctions for up to six months if Iran restored access for UN nuclear inspectors, addressed concerns over its enriched uranium stockpile, and engaged in talks with the United States.
“Our asks were fair and realistic,” said Britain’s UN Ambassador Barbara Woodward, reading the statement. “However, as of today, Iran has shown no indication that it is serious about meeting them.”
Woodward added: “We urge Iran to reconsider this position, to reach an agreement based on our offer, and to help create the space for a diplomatic solution to this issue for the long term,” standing alongside her German and French counterparts.
In response, Iran’s UN Ambassador Amir Saeid Iravani described the E3 proposal as “full of unrealistic preconditions.”
“They are demanding conditions that should be the outcome of negotiations, not the starting point, and they know these demands cannot be met,” Iravani told reporters. He said the E3 should instead support “a short, unconditional technical extension of Resolution 2231,” which underpins the 2015 nuclear deal that lifted UN and Western sanctions on Iran in exchange for limits on its nuclear programme.
Faridah Abdulkadiri
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