Iran to have meeting with European troika in coming weeks

Kazem Gharibabadi, Iran's deputy foreign minister for legal and international affairs, made the remarks on Tuesday, stressing that this round of talks with the European troika is likely to be held within three weeks.

Referring to the latest round of talks with political directors of the three European countries, he added that they were conducted as a continuation of the discussions from the three previous rounds held in Geneva and New York, PressTV reported.

“We agreed to continue our contacts. The issue is of importance, covering the lifting of sanctions as well as the nuclear issue and the expectations of both sides,” Gharibabadi said in an interview with Iran’s Tasnim news agency.

“After Leader of the Islamic Revolution Ayatollah Seyyed Ali Khamenei announced the principled policy regarding negotiations with the United States, this has become a policy and a line that we must all follow. Naturally, the Islamic Republic of Iran has always rejected negotiations under sanctions and pressure, and this time as well, this stance must be pursued with strength,” he further said.

Back on February 7, the Leader rejected holding talks with Washington, stressing that experience has shown that negotiations with the US have no effect on solving Iran's problems.

“Of course, this does not mean that we will not have dialogues with other countries, including the Europeans. Therefore, on the sidelines of [Iranian Foreign Minister Abbas] Araghchi’s trip to Geneva to attend the Disarmament Conference and the Human Rights Council, I held a meeting with the political directors of the three countries,” Gharibabadi added on Wednesday.

He noted that both sides agreed to continue the discussions at a more technical and specialized level and that the two sides would probably “meet again within the next three weeks, while our experts continue to engage in further discussions and evaluations.”

“The second point is that all four parties emphasized the need to pursue a negotiated solution for these issues of mutual interest and to reach agreements and outcomes in this regard. We should not tie all topics to the demands of a party that has consistently been disrupting the negotiations,” Gharibabadi said.

The senior diplomat also pointed out that Iran would naturally continue its diplomatic efforts and that It is the duty of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs to pursue various solutions within the framework of the Islamic establishment's principled policies.

“However, our efforts are not solely limited to negotiations with the European parties; we are also pursuing other initiatives,” Gharibabadi emphasized, adding, “We do not link our policies to the positions of other countries; we pursue our own interests.”

He noted that if Tehran feels there is an opportunity in relation to any country or group of countries, it would naturally plan accordingly and follow its own interests.

“Our discussions with any country or group of countries are based on the national interests and security of the Islamic Republic of Iran. Within this framework, if more opportunities and capacities arise, we will certainly take advantage of them,” Gharibabadi stressed.

In 2015, Iran proved the peaceful nature of its nuclear program to the world by signing the Joint Comprehensive Plan of Action (JCPOA) with six world powers. However, the US’s unilateral withdrawal in 2018 and its subsequent re-imposition of sanctions against Tehran left the future of the deal in limbo.

In 2019, Iran started to roll back the limits it had accepted under the JCPOA after the other parties failed to live up to their commitments.

“We do not put all our expectations and hopes into the basket of a potential rift between Europe and the United States. We always plan for worst-case scenarios,” Gharibabadi emphasized.

The Islamic Republic has repeatedly stressed that it has never functioned as the side to leave negotiations while declaring it would respond positively to any potential positive steps by the counterparty.