EU/E4 political consultations on regional issues with Iran were hosted in Rome on 3 May 2018. The meeting was chaired by EEAS Secretary General Helga Schmid and attended by E4 countries (France, Germany, Italy and United Kingdom) at the level of Political Directors. The Iranian delegation was led by Hossein Jaberi Ansari, Deputy Minister for Foreign Affairs.
"This is the second edition of talks in this format after the meeting in the margins of the Munich Security Conference in February 2018. The discussions, focussed on the political and humanitarian situation in Yemen, were productive. The participants agreed to meet again in this format in Brussels in the near future", said a report posted on the website of the European External Action Service.
In the meantime, in a message posted on YouTube and twitter on Thursday (3 May) Iranian Foreign Minister Mohamad Javid Zarif criticised President Donald Trump's threat to withdraw from the nuclear deal agreed earlier between Iran and the international community, saying Iran will not "renegotiate or add onto" the agreement
"Iran will not renegotiate what was agreed years ago and has been implemented," Zarif said.
The five-minute video shows Zarif behind his desk, delivering his message on the deal. He offers background first about the deal before laying into Trump and criticizing Europe for offering "the United States more concessions from our pocket."
"On 11 occasions since, the U.N. nuclear watchdog has confirmed that Iran has implemented all of its obligations," Zarif, who studied in the U.S., says in American-accented English. "In contrast, the U.S. has consistently violated the agreement, especially by bullying others from doing business with Iran."
European signatories of the deal have been trying to persuade Trump to save the pact. They argue that Iran has been abiding by its terms, a position also taken by U.S. intelligence assessments.
"Let me make it clear absolutely and once for all: we will neither outsource our security, nor will we renegotiate or add on to a deal we have already implemented in good faith," Zarif said.
Trump has described the accord, under which Iran agreed to curb its nuclear activities in return for the lifting of economic sanctions, as the worst deal ever negotiated.
source: commonspace.eu with agencies
