The coming weeks will be decisive for Iran’s nuclear program, German Chancellor Angela Merkel said on a visit to Israel, urging Tehran to come back to the negotiating table as its stalled talks with world powers hang in the balance.
The international community is in a very difficult situation, Merkel said. Although the administration of U.S. President Joe Biden has sought a return to the deal, “the days go by without Iran giving any indications that it wants to restart the talks,” while it continues sensitive uranium enrichment work. Highly enriched uranium could be used to build a nuclear bomb.
“This is a very critical situation,” she said at a news conference in Jerusalem with Israeli Prime Minister Naftali Bennett. “There are very, very decisive weeks ahead of us.”
“The message to Iran is unambiguous: There must be a quick return to the negotiating table,” Merkel said. The original deal was not ideal but it was better than nothing, she added.
The U.S. has warned time is running out to revive a 2015 accord with Iran that would lift sanctions in return for limiting its nuclear work. A sixth round of negotiations ended inconclusively in June and no date’s been set for the next one after a transition of power in Iran complicated diplomacy, Bloomberg recalls.
