Speaking on Friday following a joint phone conference with the foreign ministers of the UK, France, and Germany, as well as the EU foreign policy chief Kaja Kallas, Araghchi said the three European countries must refrain from threatening to trigger the snapback mechanism — a measure that lacks any legal or moral basis.
He emphasized that if the European Union and the E3 — Britain, France, and Germany — truly want to have a constructive role in the nuclear issue, they must abandon outdated policies of pressure and intimidation, including the threat of snapback.
Araghchi reminded his European counterparts, as well as Kaja Kallas, that it was the United States — not Iran — that withdrew from the 2015 nuclear deal (JCPOA), which had been achieved after two years of negotiations with the facilitation of the European Union.
He added that it was again the United States that walked away from the negotiating table in June this year and opted for military confrontation instead — not Iran.
Earlier, European sources had reported that the foreign ministers of the three European countries along with EU foreign policy chief had held a joint phone call with Araghchi.
According to a statement from the French Foreign Ministry, the European ministers reiterated their decision to resort to the snapback mechanism during the call.
Araghchi stressed that any new round of negotiations would only be possible if the other side is prepared for a fair, balanced agreement based on mutual interests.
