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European Reactions To Renegotiating The Iran Deal


U.S. Secretary of State Rex Tillerson (R) shakes hands with German Foreign Minister Sigmar Gabriel prior to a bilateral meeting, at the State Department, in Washington, U.S., August 29, 2017
U.S. Secretary of State Rex Tillerson (R) shakes hands with German Foreign Minister Sigmar Gabriel prior to a bilateral meeting, at the State Department, in Washington, U.S., August 29, 2017

Reactions by European politicians and officials to American demands for renegotiating the Iran nuclear deal have been mixed, following a meeting among the signatories of the deal on September 20, at the United Nations.

German Foreign Minister Sigmar Gabriel has said that if the Iran deal is abandoned, it would make it harder to work out similar deals with other countries, such as North Korea.

"It's an almost tragic situation where the only existing agreement to prevent the proliferation of nuclear weapons is in jeopardy at a time when we are seeing other countries like North Korea acquiring nuclear weapons and we need such processes more than ever," Gabriel said.

However, speaking on the sidelines of the U.N. meeting, Gabriel hinted that further work was needed in the coming weeks to save the 2015 agreement.

This statement makes it clear that abandoning the deal is a bad idea, but perhaps holding further talks to preserve it would be helpful.

On Wednesday, NBC news and other media had reported that one option President Donald Trump is entertaining is to convince European allies to agree to renegotiating some aspects of the deal.

The German foreign minister’s remarks do not seem to rule out that option.

European Union foreign policy chief Federica Mogherini, however, ruled out renegotiations on Wednesday, September 20.

"There is no need to renegotiate parts of the agreement because the agreement is concerning a nuclear program and as such is delivering," Mogherini told reporters following the UN meeting.

"We have all agreed that all sides are implementing so far the agreement," she added.

With reporting by Reuters and AFP

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