Luxembourg, 23/06/2015 (Agence Europe) - On Monday 22 June, the foreign ministers of the European countries taking part in the negotiations on the Iranian nuclear programme (the UK, France and Germany) recalled the “red lines” not to be crossed for an agreement on this issue. Together with High Representative of the EU for Foreign Affairs and Security Policy Federica Mogherini, the British, French and German foreign ministers met Iran's foreign minister, Mohammad Javad Zarif, “to take stock”, a European source said.
The UK's foreign minister, Philip Hammond, said that they could not compromise on the red lines they had drawn, and that if they find an agreement, it must be verifiable because there is a lack of trust on both sides. “We all want to see a robust and real agreement that guarantees an exclusively civilian programme”, he said.
Hammond also said that only full verification, and the possibility for the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) to confirm that both parties respect their commitments, could regenerate this trust in the future.
For his French counterpart, Laurent Fabius, a “robust” agreement must include a limit on the duration of the Iranian research and production capacities, an advanced verification system, including if necessary on the military sites, and provision for the automatic return to sanctions should Tehran breach its commitments.
Arriving in Luxembourg, Zarif called on “all parties” to “avoid having excessive demands outside the international frameworks”. Iran rejects the perspective of inspections on its military sites. Hammond said he understood Tehran's sensitivity.
A “very decisive” period. “We are at the start of a very decisive period” but “we haven't yet reached the goal”, said Germany's foreign minister, Frank-Walter Steinmeier. “There are a certain number of areas where we haven't reached a full agreement”, Hammond added, saying that, as in all negotiations, give and take is needed and that the Iranians should show a little flexibility.
“The key points must now be re-written in a final document and this is no small task because the detailed discussions have raised certain obstacles”, Steinmeier stated, hoping that the Iranians “are evolving on the key issues and that we can all together reach a final point”.
The ministers agreed on the drafting of the final agreement continuing at political director level and on as many points as possible being closed at the technical level before the ministers meet again, so that they might only be concerned with very political points, a European source stated. According to Hammond, a meeting could take place “later this week, this weekend, at the beginning of next week”. On 23 June, the EU's political director, Helga Schmid, and the Iranian deputy foreign ministers, Abbas Araghchi and Majid Takht Ravanchi, met again in Vienna. The E3+3 political directors are expected to join them later in the week.
At the end of his meetings, the Iranian minister was quite optimistic. “If there is this political resolve to accept the realities and move forwards on the basis of what was agreed in Lausanne [Ed: at the start of the week], then it is possible we may finish by the deadline [Ed: 30 June] or a few days afterwards”, he said, adding that the coming days would be “difficult”. The negotiations will be held in Vienna, the European source stated. (Camille-Cerise Gessant)