U.S. Secretary of State Antony Blinken on Friday held a “productive” meeting with counterparts from Britain, Germany and France, including a discussion of the Iran nuclear deal, a State Department spokesperson said on Saturday.
Talks between Iran and world powers over reviving a 2015 nuclear deal resumed in Vienna on Thursday.
‘Productive meeting’
“Secretary Blinken had a productive meeting with his E3 counterparts from Germany, France, and the U.K. in Liverpool yesterday. They discussed the JCPOA (Joint Comprehensive Plan of Action) talks and our way forward,” the State Department spokesperson said.
The meeting took place in the northern English city of Liverpool on the eve of a G7 Foreign Ministers’ meeting which is expected to result in a joint call for Iran to moderate its nuclear programme and grasp the opportunity of talks in Vienna.
Previous fallout
Under the original nuclear deal that then-President Donald Trump abandoned in 2018, Iran limited its nuclear programme in return for relief from U.S., European Union and UN sanctions. The West fears the programme would be used to develop weapons, something Tehran denies.
