Exclusive: Iran ‘must cooperate’ on nuclear probe, French envoy says
French Ambassador to the US Philippe Etienne tells Al-Monitor that France has spared no effort to reach an agreement in the nuclear talks.
Iran’s latest position in talks to revive the nuclear agreement has taken the process backwards, the French ambassador to the United States told Al-Monitor, adding that Iran “must cooperate” with an International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) investigation into Tehran’s undeclared nuclear materials.
“Unfortunately, the last position expressed by Iran brings us backwards, and in particular, establishes links between the JCPOA [Joint Comprehensive Plan of Action] and the obligations of Iran under its international commitments,” French Ambassador to the United States Philippe Etienne said in an interview in Washington on Thursday.
“It is not acceptable for us to put pressure on the Vienna agency (IAEA), which is the international actor in charge of these issues, and with which Iran must cooperate,” he added.
Etienne, who served as chief diplomatic advisor to French President Emmanuel Macron before his appointment as ambassador in 2019, said France has “spared no efforts" to help revive the nuclear deal.
