PARIS: Iranian Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi warned European powers against a “strategy of confrontation” over Tehran’s nuclear programme, according to comments published in a French weekly on Sunday. French Foreign Minister Jean-Noel Barrot said in late April that France, along with Germany and Britain, “will not hesitate for a single second to reapply all the sanctions” scrapped a decade ago if European security is threatened by Iran‘s nuclear activities. “This strategy of confrontation risks provoking a global nuclear proliferation crisis that would primarily affect Europeans themselves,” Araghchi said in comments published by French weekly Le Point.Araghchi said he was ready to travel to Paris, Berlin and London “to begin a new chapter.”He deplored the fact that the so-called “snapback” mechanism provided for in the 2015 agreement, enabling UN sanctions to be reinstated in the event of Iran failing to meet its commitments, was “now being used as a diplomatic lever”, whereas it was “initially designed as a tool for settling disputes as a last resort.”“Iran has made its position clear,” said Araghchi, stressing that Iran has warned global powers that “abusing the ‘snapback’ mechanism will have consequences — not only the end of Europe’s role in the agreement, but also an escalation of tensions that could become irreversible.”“The E3 must ask itself how it has reached this impasse,” he said, referring to France, Germany and Britain.“Instead of adjusting their strategy, they have adopted a confrontational stance — invoking human rights or Iran’s legitimate relations with Russia as pretexts for distancing themselves diplomatically.”The comments were published as Iran and the United States kicked off their fourth round of nuclear talks in Muscat. The negotiations follow earlier rounds that began nearly a month ago, marking the highest-level contact between the two foes since Washington withdrew in 2018 from the nuclear deal, during President Donald Trump’s first term.
