Foreign ministers from Britain, France and Germany, along with the EU’s top diplomat, will meet their Iranian counterpart in Geneva on Friday for talks on Iran’s nuclear programme.
The meeting comes amid calls from European capitals to calm tensions between Israel and Iran, after Israeli strikes last week targeted Iran’s nuclear sites and missile factories. The attack also killed senior Iranian military and nuclear officials.
Tensions have been rising over Iran’s expanding nuclear activities.
"We will meet with the European delegation," Iran’s Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi said in a statement carried by the state news agency IRNA.
European officials confirmed the talks, saying French Foreign Minister Jean-Noël Barrot, British Foreign Secretary David Lammy and German Foreign Minister Johann Wadephul will attend, along with EU foreign policy chief Kaja Kallas.
Lammy was in Washington on Thursday and scheduled to meet US Secretary of State Marco Rubio for discussions on Iran, the US State Department said.
President Donald Trump said he is considering military action against Iranian nuclear facilities, as Israel continues its attacks and Tehran responds with missile fire.
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2015 nuclear agreement
France, Germany, Britain and the EU were all part of the 2015 nuclear agreement with Iran. The US pulled out of the deal during Trump’s first term.
Kallas, speaking for the EU and European ministers, has repeated that diplomacy is still the best option to stop Iran from building a nuclear bomb.
On Wednesday, French President Emmanuel Macron said European countries were working on a proposal to end the conflict between Iran and Israel through negotiation.
He said he had asked Barrot to prepare an initiative with close partners.
Barrot has been in regular contact with Lammy and Wadephul since Israel launched its airstrikes last Friday.
Speaking in Paris on Thursday, Barrot said, "France, Britain and Germany stand ready to bring our competence and experience on this matter."
"We are ready to take part in negotiations aimed at obtaining from Iran a lasting rollback of its nuclear and ballistic missile programmes."
Iran has been enriching uranium to 60 percent – far beyond the 3.67 percent cap set in the 2015 deal, but still below the 90 percent needed for a nuclear weapon.
Israel has said its strikes are meant to stop Iran from obtaining nuclear arms.
