Iranian nuclear: talks between Tehran and Europeans to resume on Friday

Iran will hold new talks on its nuclear program with Germany , France and the United Kingdom on Friday in Istanbul, a month after the 12-day war that pitted it against Israel and the United States.

"In response to the request of European countries, Iran has agreed to hold a new round of talks," Iranian Foreign Ministry spokesman Esmail Baghai said Monday, according to state television, which said the meeting would take place in Istanbul.

A German diplomatic source had earlier indicated that Berlin, Paris and London continued "to work intensively (...) to find a lasting and verifiable diplomatic solution to the Iranian nuclear program" and were planning a meeting this week.

"Iran has shown that it is capable of thwarting (the attacks) but has always been ready for real, reciprocal and good faith diplomacy," Iranian Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi wrote on X on Sunday.

Iran is suspected by Western countries and Israel of wanting to acquire an atomic bomb , which it denies, emphasizing its right to pursue a nuclear program for civilian purposes .

On June 13, Israel launched a surprise attack by bombing Iran and killing its top military officials and scientists linked to its nuclear program.

The United States joined its Israeli ally's offensive by striking three nuclear sites on the night of June 21-22.

Since these strikes ordered by US President Donald Trump, discussions have been suspended. The last meeting between representatives of the E3 (Germany, France, and the United Kingdom) and Iran was held in Geneva on June 21, a few hours before the US bombings.

Meeting with Putin

Meanwhile, Russian President Vladimir Putin received Ali Larijani, a close advisor to Iranian Supreme Leader Ali Khamenei, at the Kremlin on Sunday to discuss the nuclear issue.

Mr. Larijani "conveyed assessments of the worsening situation in the Middle East and regarding the Iranian nuclear program," said Russian presidential spokesman Dmitry Peskov.

Mr. Putin expressed Russia's "well-known positions on how to stabilize the situation in the region and on the political settlement of Iran's nuclear program," he added.

This meeting in Moscow had not been announced in advance.

Russia maintains good relations with Iran, considered its main ally in the Middle East , but did not forcefully support Tehran in its recent war with Israel, nor after the US strikes on nuclear sites.

Last week, Moscow criticized a report by the American media outlet Axios that said Putin had "encouraged" Iran to accept a deal with Washington that would prevent Tehran from enriching uranium.

Threats of sanctions

Iran, several Western powers, China and Russia reached an agreement in 2015 that provided for the establishment of significant restrictions on Iran's nuclear program in exchange for the lifting of sanctions against the country.

But the United States withdrew from this long-negotiated agreement in 2018, during Donald Trump's first term, when he reimposed sanctions.

Tehran and Washington had held several rounds of nuclear talks through Omani mediators before Israel launched its 12-day war against Iran.

Recently, European countries have threatened to trigger the "snapback" mechanism included in the 2015 agreement, which provides for the imposition of sanctions if Iran fails to meet its commitments.

Last week, Iran's top diplomat held a telephone conversation with his British, French and German counterparts, as well as with the head of European Union diplomacy, Kaja Kallas.

During the call, European diplomats expressed to Mr. Araghchi "their determination to use the snapback mechanism, in the absence of concrete progress" towards a new agreement on the Iranian nuclear program.

The Iranian minister on Friday denied any "moral or legal" basis for this threat.