Dialogue between Baqeri and Officials from Three European Countries Regarding 'Mutual Concerns'

Ali Baqeri-Kani, the political deputy of the Iranian Foreign Minister, announced on Tuesday, June 13, that he met with his German, French, and British counterparts in Abu Dhabi, the capital of the United Arab Emirates. He referred to the meeting on his Twitter account as part of 'continuing diplomatic consultations with regional and extra-regional parties' and discussions about 'a range of mutual topics and concerns.' Baqeri-Kani did not provide details about these 'mutual topics and concerns.' He was appointed as the political deputy of the Foreign Ministry in September 2021 by Hossein Amir-Abdollahian, replacing Abbas Araghchi, the nuclear negotiator in Hassan Rouhani's government. Baqeri-Kani's meeting with his counterparts from Germany, France, and Britain occurred against the backdrop of remarks made by Ali Khamenei, the leader of the Islamic Republic, during a meeting with officials from the Iranian Atomic Energy Organization on Sunday, June 11, where he stated: 'You may want to make agreements in some areas; it’s fine, agree, but the infrastructure must remain intact, and these should not be damaged.' Some media outlets interpreted Khamenei's remarks as related to discussions regarding negotiations on the Islamic Republic's nuclear program. Earlier, the 'Middle East Eye' reported last Thursday, citing sources close to the 'negotiations,' that Iran and the United States were close to a temporary agreement under which the Islamic Republic agreed to reduce its uranium enrichment activities in exchange for the lifting of sanctions. According to this report, Robert Malley, the U.S. Special Envoy for Iran, has negotiated with Amir Saeed Iravani, the Islamic Republic's representative to the United Nations, and these negotiations took place on U.S. soil. The report indicated that Iran has also committed to halt 60% uranium enrichment and continue cooperation with the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) in exchange for being able to export up to one million barrels of oil daily and access its blocked assets abroad. However, a U.S. State Department spokesperson, in response to a question from the Persian section of Voice of America, called the 'Middle East Eye' report about the temporary agreement 'incorrect and misleading.' Furthermore, the U.S. has stated that reviving the JCPOA is not a priority for the Biden administration following the onset of public protests in Iran. The Islamic Republic claims that it conducts uranium enrichment for peaceful purposes, but the U.S. has repeatedly emphasized that the Islamic Republic's actions to produce 60% enriched uranium 'have no credible peaceful purpose, and no other country in the world today uses 60% enriched uranium for the purposes claimed by the Islamic Republic.' Iran's nuclear program has been criticized by several other countries, including Germany, France, Britain, and Israel.