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The parties to the Iran nuclear deal held a virtual meeting today, Wednesday, in an attempt to calm things down before US President-elect Joe Biden takes office next month.
China, France, Germany, Russia, Great Britain and Iran participated in the meeting, and it was chaired by German diplomacy Helga Schmidt, Secretary General of the European External Action Service.
For the signatories of the agreement, the bet is to ask Tehran to fulfill its commitments.
“This is an opportunity to call out to the Iranians to stop violating the agreement,” said a diplomat, and not miss the opportunity to return to diplomacy with the arrival of Biden to the presidency.
The same source added that the two-hour meeting “comes at a time that is not the best” because it is a period of anticipation on the US side weeks before the president’s inauguration.
Biden had announced his desire to return to the agreement, warning of the outbreak of a race to build an atomic bomb in the Middle East. But he did not reveal anything about his strategy.
Before the start of the meeting, Russian Ambassador Mikhail Ulyanov wrote on Twitter: “The talks will focus on how to preserve the nuclear deal and ensure its full and balanced implementation.”
Earlier, Russia called on Iran to show “responsibility” to the fullest and not fall for “auctions.”
Notably, the Iranian nuclear deal was concluded in 2015, and stipulated the adoption of measures designed to prevent Tehran from possessing an atomic bomb, in exchange for the lifting of economic sanctions.
However, the deal has failed since the United States withdrew from it in May 2018, under which Washington reimposed economic sanctions on Tehran.
Voltage and fluctuations
Currently, the dossier is witnessing further fluctuations since the assassination of Iranian nuclear scientist Mohsen Fakhrizadeh at the end of last November, in a process that Tehran said Israeli and US intelligence were behind schedule.
In recent weeks, Tehran has hardened its stance, to the point where Paris, London and Berlin have expressed “deep concern” over the placement of 3 chains of centrifuges at the Natanz facility for uranium enrichment in central Iran. .
The three capitals are also concerned that the Iranian parliament will pass a controversial law on the nuclear file that, if passed, would likely spell the end of the deal.
According to local media, this text urges the government to take immediate measures to produce and store “at least 120 kilograms per year of uranium enriched by 20%.”
He also calls for the “cessation” of inspections by the International Atomic Energy Agency.
In this tense context, last Saturday Iran executed the opposition, Ruhollah Zam, who had refugee status in France, triggering condemnation around the world.
On Wednesday, Iran’s Supreme Leader Ali Khamenei said Washington’s hostility toward his country will not stop when President Donald Trump leaves power.
Opening signs
On the other hand, Iranian President Hassan Rouhani opposes the bill voted by Conservative MPs and intensifies openness signals directed at the next US government.
He recently said that once the economic sanctions are lifted, “we will also return to all the commitments we have made,” and asked the president-elect of the United States to open a new page by returning to the “situation that prevailed” before the Trump presidency. , who decided to withdraw from the agreement unilaterally.
Biden is scheduled to be sworn in and formally assume his duties on January 20.
The Iranian president reconfirmed today that his country is “very happy” with the upcoming end of the Trump era, in which he adopted a policy of “maximum pressure” and sanctions.
Previously, Josep Borrell, head of foreign policy and head of security of the European Union, called for work to continue “to keep alive the Joint Comprehensive Plan of Action (the nuclear agreement).”
Borrell insisted, a few days ago, that “this agreement is the only way to prevent Iran from becoming a nuclear power.”
He added: “At this stage, despite political tensions,” cooperation is progressing normally “on the ground.
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