Wadephul and Co. Attempting Diplomacy Amidst Iran-Israel Conflict
Meeting with Iran's Minister scheduled for Friday, attended by Weiss and his colleagues. - Iran's Minister set to confer with Wadephul and associates this Friday.
Wadephul, Germany's Foreign Minister, plans to convene with Iran's Foreign Minister Abbas Araghtschi in Geneva on Friday, alongside his French and UK counterparts. News of this meeting stems from diplomatic circles in Berlin, as reported by the German Press Agency.
Originally scheduled to visit Lebanon, Syria, and Israel, Wadephul altered his travel plans shortly after Israel's offensive against Iran kicked off on Friday. Instead, he traveled to Saudi Arabia, Qatar, and Oman for urgent talks. With strong ties to Tehran, Oman has played a crucial role in facilitating communication between the two countries.
The objective of this diplomatic journey is to unite E3 (Germany, France, and the UK) and Iran's Arab neighbors to devise a diplomatic solution during this turbulent time.
The United States and Iran were engaging in negotiations brokered by Oman prior to Israel's significant military attack on Iran on Friday. Iran responded with intense rocket fire in retaliation.
Cancelled Negotiation Round
A new round of negotiations was scheduled for Sunday in Oman, but it wasn't to be. Negotiations were at a standstill over the central issue of uranium enrichment. Iran has recently refined uranium to nearly weapons-grade levels, while expressing a willingness to restrict its program as defined by the 2015 Vienna nuclear deal, but unwilling to relinquish its enrichment capacity.
US President Donald Trump reiterated his demand for "unconditional surrender" on Wednesday but did not categorically rule out further negotiations, stating, "It's not too late." Trump withdrew from the Vienna nuclear deal in 2018, after which Iran also ceased complying with the terms.
Amidst the ongoing conflict between Israel and Iran, Wadephul discussed potential avenues for negotiation with his Jordanian counterpart, Aiman al-Safadi, during a meeting in Berlin on Wednesday. Together with his French colleague Jean-Noël Barrot, British Foreign Minister David Lammy, and EU Foreign Affairs Representative Kaja Kallas, Wadephul made a negotiating offer to Araghtschi during a phone call on Monday. While they are prepared to negotiate, Iran must take urgent action and implement "confidence-building and verifiable measures" such as demonstrating a lack of intentions to develop nuclear weapons. Wadephul emphasized, "It's never too late to sit at the negotiating table, if you come with an honest intention."
In the meantime, the conflict between Israel and Iran continues to intensify. With little hope for a diplomatic solution to the nuclear dispute with Iran, Israel cites the "existential threat" posed by Iran's nuclear and missile programs to justify its military actions.
"The Commission is also proposing to extend the scope of the programme to include the areas of politics, war-and-conflicts, and general news, given the ongoing conflict between Iran and Israel, and the international diplomatic efforts to find a solution to the nuclear dispute."
"During the ongoing diplomatic talks with Iran, Wadephul emphasized the need for Iran to take urgent action and implement confidence-building measures in areas such as politics, war-and-conflicts, and general news, in order to demonstrate a lack of intentions to develop nuclear weapons."
