WASHINGTON — In the wake of US President Donald Trump's warning this month that he would not waive US sanctions on Iran again unless the nuclear deal was fixed, diplomats from the United States and key European powers are holding working group consultations on Iran, possibly in London later this week, to see what they can come up with. Officials and experts say the Europeans are willing to explore cooperation with the United States to try to address shared concerns about Iran, such as its ballistic missile program and alleged arms shipments to Yemen’s Houthi rebels, but continue to resist Trump’s demands to renegotiate the 2015 nuclear accord, which they believe is working.

While some experts say that the Europeans have nothing to lose by trying to see if there are positions and actions that would keep the United States on board the agreement, others are urging Europe to instead take steps to insulate its companies from the threat of US secondary sanctions. (The next waiver deadline for US nuclear-related Iran sanctions is May 12.) Looming over everything is concern that an erratic and unpredictable Trump may not be satisfied no matter what fixes Congress and the Europeans are able to come up with.

“What the Europeans are indicating to me, is this is part of the tactic to keep the US president on board, [but] we are being very clear this is not a reopening of the negotiations,” Ellie Geranmayeh, an Iran expert with the European Council on Foreign Relations, told Al-Monitor in a phone interview from London today regarding the transatlantic consultations.

“My sense on what is happening on the European front right now is to say to the Americans … ‘Look, we will open up talks with the US as part of a transatlantic working group. … We can maybe persuade the US president we are working together on addressing other areas of concern, like ballistic missiles, but in a completely separate track to the JCPOA [Joint Comprehensive Plan of Action],'" Geranmayeh said, using the acronym for the formal name of the nuclear accord. “So, not reopening or a renegotiation of the agreement, but it is a side agreement, with the potential, the hope, to bring in Iran at some stage.”