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Ahead of new talks, Iran blames Europeans for nuclear deal collapse

Ahead of new talks, Iran blames Europeans for nuclear deal collapse

News.com.au5 days ago
Tehran on Monday blamed European powers for the failure of the 2015 nuclear deal, accusing them of breaking their commitments ahead of renewed talks in Istanbul with Britain, France and Germany.
The 2015 deal, reached between Iran and the UN Security Council's permanent members -- Britain, China, France, Russia and the United States -- plus Germany, imposed curbs on Iran's nuclear programme in exchange for sanctions relief.
But it unravelled in 2018 when the United States, during Donald Trump's first term as president, unilaterally withdrew from the accord and reimposed sweeping sanctions.
The Europeans had pledged continued support for the deal, but the mechanism intended to offset US sanctions never materialised effectively and many Western firms were forced to exit Iran, which has since faced a deepening economic crisis.
"The European parties have been at fault and negligent in implementing" the nuclear agreement, said Iranian foreign ministry spokesman Esmail Baqaei.
His remarks come ahead of a meeting Friday in Istanbul between Iranian officials and representatives from Britain, France and Germany to discuss the future of the nuclear deal.
Ahead of those talks, Baqaei said Tehran would host a trilateral meeting on Tuesday about the nuclear issue and the potential reimposition of sanctions with Chinese and Russian representatives.
In recent weeks, the three European powers have threatened to trigger the UN "snapback" mechanism to reimpose international sanctions on Tehran, accusing it of breaching its nuclear commitments.
A German diplomatic source had told AFP on Sunday the E3 were in contact with Tehran and said "Iran must never be allowed to acquire a nuclear weapon".
"That is why Germany, France and the United Kingdom are continuing to work intensively in the E3 format to find a sustainable and verifiable diplomatic solution to the Iranian nuclear programme," the source said.
- 'No intention of speaking with America' -
The International Atomic Energy Agency says Iran is the only non-nuclear-armed country currently enriching uranium to 60 percent -- far beyond the 3.67 percent cap set by the 2015 accord.
That is a short step from the 90 percent enrichment required for a nuclear weapon.
Using the snapback clause was "meaningless, unjustifiable and immoral", Baqaei told a news conference, arguing that Iran only began distancing itself from the agreement in response to Western non-compliance.
"Iran's reduction of its commitments was carried out in accordance with the provisions outlined in the agreement," he said.
Western powers -- led by the United States and backed by Israel, Iran's arch-enemy -- have long accused Tehran of secretly seeking nuclear weapons capability.
Iran has repeatedly denied this, insisting its nuclear programme is solely for civilian purposes such as energy production.
Tehran and Washington had held five rounds of nuclear talks since April, but a planned meeting on June 15 was cancelled after Israel launched a military strike on Iran on June 13, triggering a 12-day conflict.
"At this stage, we have no intention of speaking with America," Baqaei said Monday.
Israel launched on June 13 a wave of surprise strikes on its regional nemesis, targeting key military and nuclear facilities.
The United States launched its own set of strikes against Iran's nuclear programme on June 22, hitting the uranium enrichment facility at Fordo, in Qom province south of Tehran, as well as nuclear sites in Isfahan and Natanz.
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‘Could develop into war': Death toll rises as Thailand-Cambodia border clashes intensify
‘Could develop into war': Death toll rises as Thailand-Cambodia border clashes intensify

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‘Could develop into war': Death toll rises as Thailand-Cambodia border clashes intensify

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‘Could develop into war': Death toll rises as Thailand-Cambodia border clashes intensify
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Both sides have now sought diplomatic support to end the conflict, saying they had acted in self-defence and calling on the other to cease fighting and start negotiations. Thailand's ambassador to the U.N. told an emergency meeting of the Security Council – called by Cambodia and held behind closed doors late on Friday in New York – that soldiers had been injured by landmines in Thai territory on two occasions since mid-July and that Cambodia had then launched attacks on Thursday morning. Cambodia has stated the landmines were leftovers from previous conflicts. 'Thailand urges Cambodia to immediately cease all hostilities and acts of aggression, and resume dialogue in good faith,' Cherdchai Chaivaivid told the council in remarks released to media. Cambodia has strongly denied the claims. Its defence ministry said Thailand had launched the 'deliberate, unprovoked, and unlawful military attack' on Thursday, and was now mobilising troops and military equipment on the border. 'These deliberate military preparations reveal Thailand's intent to expand its aggression and further violate Cambodia's sovereignty,' the ministry said in a statement on Saturday. Cambodia's UN ambassador Chhea Keo told reporters after the security council meeting that his country had 'asked for immediate ceasefires, unconditionally, and we also call for the peaceful solution to the dispute'. He responded to accusations that Cambodia attacked Thailand, asking how a small country with no air force could attack a much larger country with an army three times its size, stressing, 'We do not do that.' Bangkok has reiterated it wanted to resolve the dispute bilaterally, telling the Security Council it was 'deeply regrettable that Cambodia has deliberately avoided meaningful dialogue and instead sought to internationalise the issue to serve its own political objectives'. Cambodia has also expressed outrage at Thailand's use of cluster munitions, calling it a violation of international law. Loading Thailand's military, however, said the country was not a party to the Convention on Cluster Munitions but that it followed the principle of proportionality, 'to enhance explosive destruction capabilities against military targets only'. The Security Council did not issue a statement, but a diplomat said all 15 members called on the parties to de-escalate, show restraint and resolve the dispute peacefully. The council also urged the regional bloc, the Association of South-East Asian Nations, known as ASEAN, to help resolve the border fighting, the diplomat said, speaking on condition of anonymity because the meeting was private. Malaysia, which chairs the 10-nation regional bloc that includes both countries, called for an end to hostilities and offered to mediate. Australia and Britain have issued travel advisories to avoid certain areas of Cambodia and Thailand, including the border regions of Buriram, Si Sa Ket, Surin, and Ubon Ratchathani provinces. As the fighting intensified, villagers on both sides have been caught in the crossfire, leading many to flee. About 600 people took shelter at a gymnasium in a university in Surin, Thailand, some 80 kilometres from the border. Evacuees sat in groups, on mats and blankets, and queued for food and drinks. Seamstress Pornpan Sooksai was accompanied by four cats in two fabric carriers. She said she was doing laundry at her home near Ta Muen Thom temple when shelling began on Thursday. 'I just heard, boom, boom. We already prepared the cages, clothes and everything, so we ran and carried our things to the car. I was frightened, scared,' she recalled. Rattana Meeying, another evacuee, said she had also lived through the 2011 clashes between the two countries but described this flare-up as worse. 'Children, old people, were hit out of the blue,' she said. 'I never imagined it would be this violent.' In the Kantharalak district of Thailand's Sisaket province, on the border near some of the clashes, hotel worker Chianuwat Thalalai said the town had emptied. 'Nearly everybody's gone, it's almost a deserted city,' the 31-year-old told Reuters. 'My hotel is still open for some of those nearer to the border area that need a place to stay.' Across the border in Cambodia, villages on the outskirts of Oddar Meanchey province were largely deserted. Homes stood locked, while chickens and dogs roamed outside. Some villagers earlier dug holes to create makeshift underground bunkers, covering them with wood, tarpaulin and zinc sheets to shield themselves from shelling. Families with children were seen packing their belongings on homemade tractors to evacuate, though a few men refused to leave. A remote Buddhist temple surrounded by rice fields accommodated several hundred evacuated villagers. Women rested in hammocks, some cradling babies, while children ran about. Makeshift plastic tents were being set up under the trees. Veng Chin, 74, pleaded with both governments to negotiate a settlement 'so that I can return to my home and work on the farm.' Thailand and Cambodia have bickered for decades over jurisdiction of various undemarcated points along their 817-kilometre land border, with ownership of the ancient Hindu temples Ta Moan Thom and the 11th century Preah Vihear central to the disputes.

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