US, UK, France, and Germany Leaders: "Iran Must Seize Opportunity to Resume Nuclear Talks"

[Asia Economy Reporter Yujin Cho] On the 30th (local time), the leaders of the United States, the United Kingdom, France, and Germany discussed the Iran nuclear issue in Rome, Italy, where the Group of Twenty (G20) summit was held.

According to major foreign media, German Chancellor Angela Merkel led a meeting in Rome with U.S. President Joe Biden, French President Emmanuel Macron, and British Prime Minister Boris Johnson to discuss the Iran nuclear negotiations.

After the meeting, the four leaders issued a statement expressing "serious concerns over Iran's provocative nuclear activities, such as continuing to enrich uranium to high levels, following the suspension of talks to restore the nuclear agreement in June."

They warned that "(Iran's) restrictions on inspections by the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) and continuation of nuclear activities make the possibility of restoring the nuclear agreement slim."

The four leaders emphasized, "President Raisi of Iran must seize this opportunity to achieve results in the nuclear negotiations, which are in a critical situation," adding, "This is the only way to prevent a worsening situation that benefits no country."

The Iran nuclear agreement was signed in 2015 between Iran and six countries: the United States, France, the United Kingdom, Russia, China, and Germany. The agreement centers on lifting economic sanctions on Iran in exchange for Iran halting its nuclear weapons development efforts.

Former U.S. President Donald Trump unilaterally withdrew from the Iran nuclear agreement in 2018 and reinstated sanctions against Iran. In response, Iran limited IAEA inspections of its nuclear facilities and increased uranium enrichment levels up to 60%.

Since then, Iran has conducted negotiations to restore the agreement with the remaining parties?France, the United Kingdom, Germany, Russia, and China?excluding the United States.