Iran meets Europeans but no breakthrough as Tehran pushes back

Iran meets Europeans but no breakthrough as Tehran pushes back
By Delphine TOUITOU
United Nations, United States (AFP) Sept 23, 2025

European powers seeking to soon reimpose tough sanctions on Iran over its nuclear program met Tuesday with Tehran's top diplomat, but there were no signs of compromise.

There was however an agreement to continue talks as the clock ticks on the reimposition of deep sanctions on Iran's economy, even as Iran's supreme leader resisted European pressure.

"Iran must never obtain a nuclear weapon," German Foreign Minister Johann Wadephul told reporters before the meeting on the sidelines of the UN General Assembly in New York.

But he added: "The chances of reaching a diplomatic solution before the sanctions go into effect are slim."

French President Emmanuel Macron said he would meet with Iranian President Masoud Pezeshkian Wednesday to pursue a deal, but warned that "either Iran makes a gesture and goes back to the path of peace and accountability... or sanctions will have to be imposed."

Iran's supreme leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei on Tuesday said the Islamic republic would not give in to pressure to abandon its enrichment of uranium.

"We did not surrender and we will not. We did not and will not yield to pressure in this matter or any other matter," he said.

Iran's foreign ministry said "it was agreed that consultations with all parties involved would continue."

Iranian Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi has until the end of Saturday to reach a deal with his British, French, German and EU counterparts to avoid the reinstatement of UN sanctions, which had been suspended under a deal signed in 2015.

- 'The most dangerous weapon' -

Araghchi met in New York with his counterparts from the three European powers as well as EU foreign policy chief Kaja Kallas.

Iran and the Europeans blame one another for the failure of diplomatic efforts to reach a new agreement on Tehran's nuclear program, long a rancorous sticking point between the two sides.

European countries and the United States suspect the Iranian government of seeking to acquire an atomic bomb. Tehran has vigorously denied that, insisting it has a right to civilian nuclear energy.

Israel in June carried out a major military campaign against Iranian nuclear sites, with President Donald Trump joining by ordering US warplanes to drop bombs on key targets.

The Trump administration, which had long pushed for the reimposition of sanctions, has voiced a willingness to hold talks with Iran, which doubts Washington's sincerity.

IAEA Director-General Rafael Grossi told AFP on Monday that US envoy Steve Witkoff was exploring different ways of communicating with Iran, without specifying further details.

The United States has not commented on any contact with Iran in New York.

But Khamenei said "one cannot negotiate with such a party. In my view, negotiations with the United States on the nuclear issue, and perhaps on other issues as well, are a complete dead end."

Trump, addressing the UN General Assembly, contended that US warplanes succeeded in "totally obliterating" Iranian nuclear sites.

"My position, it's very simple. The world's number-one sponsor of terror can never be allowed to possess the most dangerous weapon," Trump said.

The European side has set three conditions to extend the sanction relief period to allow more time for negotiations on a comprehensive treaty.

They include the resumption of direct negotiations without preconditions, full access for International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) inspectors to Iranian nuclear sites, and accurate information on the location of enriched materials.

The European side believes that none of the conditions have been met.

Tehran accuses the European powers of exerting political pressure that undermines negotiations and claims to have produced a "balanced" proposal, the details of which have not been disclosed.