France, UK, Germany to reimpose Iran sanctions in August if no progress
The economic penalties on Iran that were lifted under a 2015 agreement in return for allowing restrictions and monitoring of its nuclear programme would return by the end of next month 'at the latest' if there is no breakthrough, French Foreign Minister Jean-Noel Barrot told reporters in Brussels on Tuesday.
The deadline was announced as pressure mounts on diplomats to find a new solution to Iran's nuclear ambitions, which Tehran has reiterated are civilian in nature, in the wake of massive Israeli and United States strikes on the country last month.
'France and its partners are … justified in reapplying global embargoes on arms, banks and nuclear equipment that were lifted 10 years ago,' Barrot told reporters before a meeting with European Union foreign ministers in Brussels.
'Without a firm, tangible and verifiable commitment from Iran, we will do so by the end of August at the latest.'
Snapback provision
Under a so-called snapback provision in the 2015 deal, United Nations sanctions are able to be reimposed on Iran if Tehran does not comply with its requirements.
The British, French and German ambassadors to the UN met on Tuesday to discuss reimposing the sanctions, The Associated Press news agency reported.
The issue was also discussed in a phone call on Monday between the foreign ministers of the three countries and US Secretary of State Marco Rubio, two US officials, speaking on condition of anonymity to discuss private conversations, told the agency.
Iran's UN mission made no comment in response to the threat of returned sanctions, AP reported.
But Iranian Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi said in recent days that the return of UN sanctions by the European signatories of the 2015 nuclear deal would 'end' Europe's role in the Iranian nuclear issue and as a mediator between Tehran and Washington.
Iran open to US talks
The US and Iran were engaged in extended negotiations over Tehran's nuclear programme before the Israeli strikes began in June and were joined in their latter stages with strikes by Washington. US President Donald Trump unilaterally withdrew the US from the Iran nuclear agreement in 2018 during his first term in office, declaring it too weak on Iran.
After the attacks in June, Iran suspended cooperation with the International Atomic Energy Agency, which monitors its nuclear programme.
Araghchi said in recent days that Tehran would be prepared to resume nuclear talks with Washington as long as it provides 'a firm guarantee' that there would be no further attacks.
He said the Israeli and US strikes have 'made it more difficult and complicated to achieve a solution'.
In a statement published by the Iranian Students' News Agency, Iran's parliament said on Wednesday that the country should not restart nuclear negotiations with the US until conditions are met. The report did not say what the conditions were.
Trump and his Middle East envoy, Steve Witkoff, have said talks with Iran would happen soon, but nothing has been scheduled.
Hashtags
Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles
Al Jazeera
an hour ago
- Al Jazeera
Thailand-Cambodia border clashes continue before Malaysia ceasefire talks
Clashes have continued in several areas along Thailand's disputed border with Cambodia, as fighting between the two sides entered its fifth day just hours before scheduled ceasefire talks. Leaders of the two warring Southeast Asian countries are scheduled to hold ceasefire talks in Malaysia starting at 07:00 GMT on Monday, in a bid to halt fighting that has killed at least 35 people and displaced more than 270,000 from both sides of the border. Thailand's acting Prime Minister Phumtham Wechayachai and Cambodia's Prime Minister Hun Manet are due to meet in Kuala Lumpur for talks. China is also expected to send a delegation to the talks brokered by Malaysia and being pushed by the United States. In a post on X on Monday, Hun said the purpose of the talks is to achieve an immediate ceasefire in the conflict with Thailand. However, Phumtham, before departing Bangkok on Monday, told reporters: 'We do not believe Cambodia is acting in good faith, based on their actions in addressing the issue. They need to demonstrate genuine intent, and we will assess that during the meeting.' Meanwhile, Thai army spokesperson Colonel Richa Suksuwanon told reporters on Monday that fighting continues along the border, as gunfire could be heard at dawn in Samrong in Cambodia's Oddar Meanchey province, The Associated Press news agency reported. On Sunday, Thailand said one person was killed and another injured after Cambodia fired a rocket in Sisaket province. Thailand's military also reported that Cambodian snipers were camping in one of the contested temples, and accused Phnom Penh of surging troops along the border and hammering Thai territory with rockets. Cambodia's Ministry of National Defence spokeswoman Maly Socheata on Monday accused Thailand of deploying 'a lot of troops' and firing 'heavy weapons' into the Cambodian territory. Socheata claimed that before dawn on Monday, the Thai military targeted areas near the ancient Ta Muen Thom and the Ta Kwai temples, which Cambodia claims are its territory but are being disputed by Thailand. She also accused the Thai military of firing smoke bombs from aircraft over Cambodian territory and heavy weapons at its soldiers, adding that Cambodian troops 'were able to successfully repel the attacks'. Al Jazeera's Tony Cheng, reporting from Thailand's border province of Surin, said the mediators have been 'very reluctant' to acknowledge the holding of talks in the Malaysian capital. 'The Malaysian Foreign Ministry was incredibly nervous. Last week, they had said that Prime Minister Anwar Ibrahim had brokered a peace deal only to be shot down very quickly by the Thai Foreign Ministry,' Cheng said. Still, Cheng said a mounting death toll and the number of displaced people could give the two leaders the 'motivation' to resolve the crisis peacefully. US Secretary of State Marco Rubio on Sunday said US officials 'are on the ground in Malaysia to assist these peace efforts', while Anwar told domestic media he would focus on securing an 'immediate ceasefire'.
Qatar Tribune
10 hours ago
- Qatar Tribune
Russians attempt to encircle Pokrovsk in eastern Ukraine
DPA Kiev After unsuccessful direct assaults on the eastern Ukrainian city of Pokrovsk, Russian troops have now shifted to attempts at encirclement, local troop spokesman Viktor Trehubov reported on Ukrainian state television on Sunday. Efforts are being made, particularly from the east, to break through Ukrainian positions and encircle Pokrovsk, Trehubov said, adding that the defensive battle in the area near Kostiantynivka is ongoing. A direct assault on Pokrovsk reportedly makes no sense for the Russian military given the high losses, hence the attempt at encirclement. Pokrovsk has been a persistent hotspot on the fronts in eastern Ukraine for months. The city is located in the west of the eastern Ukrainian region of Donetsk at a strategically important transport hub. It is now almost completely destroyed. Ukraine has been defending itself against a full-scale Russian invasion for over three years. Meanwhile, at least three passengers have died in a Russian drone attack on a bus in the eastern Ukrainian region of Sumy. Additionally, a further 20 passengers were injured, according to the regional military administration. The information could not be independently verified. In the southern Ukrainian city of Kherson, a 58-year-old woman died in a Russian attack, according to official reports. Two days earlier, a resident was killed and another seven were injured in a Russian attack on the city. The respective reports did not specify whether the people were victims of drone or artillery attacks. Russian President Vladimir Putin on Sunday announced the restructuring and further armament of the navy during the conclusion of a major naval exercise. By the end of the year, two marine infantry brigades will be converted into divisions, with three more to follow shortly, Putin said. 'This will significantly increase the fleet's striking power and combat capabilities,' he stated. The five-day exercise, which concluded on Russia's Navy Day on Sunday, involved more than 150 warships and support vessels, 120 aircraft and helicopters, and over 15,000 soldiers, according to official information. The drills took place simultaneously in the Baltic Sea, the Arctic Ocean, the Pacific Ocean and the Caspian Sea. The aim of the exercise was to defend against a large-scale naval attack, the Russian government said. The Kremlin accuses NATO of endangering Russia's security. The Western military alliance also conducted a naval exercise earlier this year: BALTOPS 2025. According to official figures, around 50 ships and approximately 9,000 soldiers participated in the exercise in June. In a video message, Putin described the navy as the 'pride and achievement of the fatherland.' However, the naval parade planned for Sunday — an annual event Putin started in 2017 — was cancelled for security reasons, unlike the military exercise. In the region surrounding St Petersburg, more than 10 drones were reportedly shot down in the morning, according to official information. Governor Aleksandr Drozdenko said a woman in the Lomonosov district was slightly injured by falling drone debris. St Petersburg's Pulkovo Airport was closed for several hours in the morning for take-offs and landings. The Russian military reported the downing of 99 drones nationwide. Putin called this year's Navy Day a wonderful holiday, but added, 'It is right that we spend the holiday in a combat and working atmosphere, with everyone in their place, and the fleet demonstrating its combat potential and quality.' The head of the Kremlin followed most of the naval manoeuvres via video transmission from the navy's main headquarters in St Petersburg.
Al Jazeera
17 hours ago
- Al Jazeera
Iran's plan to abandon GPS is about much more than technology
For the past few years, governments across the world have paid close attention to conflicts in Ukraine and the Middle East. There, it is said, we see the first glimpses of what warfare of the future will look like, not just in terms of weaponry, but also in terms of new technologies and tactics. Most recently, the United States-Israeli attacks on Iran demonstrated not just new strategies of drone deployment and infiltration but also new vulnerabilities. During the 12-day conflict, Iran and vessels in the waters of the Gulf experienced repeated disruptions of GPS signal. This clearly worried the Iranian authorities who, after the end of the war, began to look for alternatives. 'At times, disruptions are created on this [GPS] system by internal systems, and this very issue has pushed us toward alternative options like BeiDou,' Ehsan Chitsaz, deputy communications minister, told Iranian media in mid-July. He added that the government was developing a plan to switch transportation, agriculture and the internet from GPS to BeiDou. Iran's decision to explore adopting China's navigation satellite system may appear at first glance to be merely a tactical manoeuvre. Yet, its implications are far more profound. This move is yet another indication of a major global realignment. For decades, the West, and the US in particular, have dominated the world's technological infrastructure from computer operating systems and the internet to telecommunications and satellite networks. This has left much of the world dependent on an infrastructure it cannot match or challenge. This dependency can easily become vulnerability. Since 2013, whistleblowers and media investigations have revealed how various Western technologies and schemes have enabled illicit surveillance and data gathering on a global scale – something that has worried governments around the world. Iran's possible shift to BeiDou sends a clear message to other nations grappling with the delicate balance between technological convenience and strategic self-defence: The era of blind, naive dependence on US-controlled infrastructure is rapidly coming to an end. Nations can no longer afford to have their military capabilities and vital digital sovereignty tied to the satellite grid of a superpower they cannot trust. This sentiment is one of the driving forces behind the creation of national or regional satellite navigation systems, from Europe's Galileo to Russia's GLONASS, each vying for a share of the global positioning market and offering a perceived guarantee of sovereign control. GPS was not the only vulnerability Iran encountered during the US-Israeli attacks. The Israeli army was able to assassinate a number of nuclear scientists and senior commanders in the Iranian security and military forces. The fact that Israel was able to obtain their exact locations raised fears that it was able to infiltrate telecommunications and trace people via their phones. On June 17 as the conflict was still raging, the Iranian authorities urged the Iranian people to stop using the messaging app WhatsApp and delete it from their phones, saying it was gathering user information to send to Israel. Whether this appeal was linked to the assassinations of the senior officials is unclear, but Iranian mistrust of the app run by US-based corporation Meta is not without merit. Cybersecurity experts have long been sceptical about the security of the app. Recently, media reports have revealed that the artificial intelligence software Israel uses to target Palestinians in Gaza is reportedly fed data from social media. Furthermore, shortly after the end of the attacks on Iran, the US House of Representatives moved to ban WhatsApp from official devices. For Iran and other countries around the world, the implications are clear: Western platforms can no longer be trusted as mere conduits for communication; they are now seen as tools in a broader digital intelligence war. Tehran has already been developing its own intranet system, the National Information Network, which gives more control over internet use to state authorities. Moving forward, Iran will likely expand this process and possibly try to emulate China's Great Firewall. By seeking to break with Western-dominated infrastructure, Tehran is definitively aligning itself with a growing sphere of influence that fundamentally challenges Western dominance. This partnership transcends simple transactional exchanges as China offers Iran tools essential for genuine digital and strategic independence. The broader context for this is China's colossal Belt and Road Initiative (BRI). While often framed as an infrastructure and trade project, BRI has always been about much more than roads and ports. It is an ambitious blueprint for building an alternative global order. Iran – strategically positioned and a key energy supplier – is becoming an increasingly important partner in this expansive vision. What we are witnessing is the emergence of a new powerful tech bloc – one that inextricably unites digital infrastructure with a shared sense of political defiance. Countries weary of the West's double standards, unilateral sanctions and overwhelming digital hegemony will increasingly find both comfort and significant leverage in Beijing's expanding clout. This accelerating shift heralds the dawn of a new 'tech cold war', a low-temperature confrontation in which nations will increasingly choose their critical infrastructure, from navigation and communications to data flows and financial payment systems, not primarily based on technological superiority or comprehensive global coverage but increasingly on political allegiance and perceived security. As more and more countries follow suit, the Western technological advantage will begin to shrink in real time, resulting in redesigned international power dynamics. The views expressed in this article are the author's own and do not necessarily reflect Al Jazeera's editorial stance.
