Berlin, June 7: Germany’s foreign minister Heiko Mass is slated to pay an official visit to Iran next week to hold discussions over the landmark international nuclear deal, including other regional matters, amid escalating tensions between the United States and Iran.
According to ANI news reports, the minister is expected on June 10 to arrive in Tehran, after which he is slated to meet with top-level officials of the Iranian leadership, foreign ministry’s spokesperson Maria Adebahr said.
Adebahr was quoted by Anadolu News agency as saying, “You know our position, we are trying to keep the nuclear deal alive because we believe that it’s a good agreement.”
During his visit, Mass is expected to holds dialogues with Iranian foreign minister Mohammad Javad Zarif, including other senior officials.
The relations between Tehran and Washington have soured after US President Donald Trump pulled America out of the landmark 2015 nuclear deal, the International Nuclear Forces (INF) Treaty of the JCPOA (Joint Comprehensive Plan of Action) last year, which aimed to curb Iran’s nuclear programme in return of sanctions relief.
Following Trump’s move, it further slapped Tehran with multiple sanctions, citing Iran responsible for state-sponsored conflicts and terrorism.
Iran, on the other hand, also partially pulled itself out of the nuclear agreement which meant it would end exporting its uranium stocks.
Iran has warned the remaining signatories such as Russia, China, Germany, France, and the United Kingdom had only 60 days remaining before it would restart top-level enrichment of uranium.
The US has stated it would continue to “impose maximum pressure” against Tehran until the nation gives up its “destabilizing ambition” of expanding its nuclear programme.