Iran welcomes French mediation to ease US tension

By Abdul Jabbar Abu Ras

TEHRAN (AA) – Iran on Wednesday welcomed French mediation to de-escalate tension between Tehran and Washington, calling on the Europeans to abide by their commitments under the 2015 nuclear deal.

"Tehran will welcome any effort made out of good faith to de-escalate tensions and promote diplomacy," Foreign Ministry spokesman Abbas Mousavi told the official IRNA news agency.

Describing France as a signatory to the 2015 nuclear deal, Mousavi said the French diplomatic efforts were "a commitment to save the deal".

The Iranian spokesman, however, said no new negotiations have been proposed regarding the U.S. return to the nuclear deal during French President Emmanuel Macron's talks with his Iranian counterpart Hassan Rouhani.

"Iran has not received any official suggestion," he said.

He said the current talks are focused on the implementation of the current nuclear deal and fulfilling the obligations of France, the UK, Germany as well as Russia and China.

Tensions have been rising between the U.S. and Iran since May 2018, when Washington unilaterally withdrew from the deal.

The U.S. has since embarked on a diplomatic and economic campaign to put pressure on Iran to renegotiate the agreement, as well as other Iranian activities Washington considers to be "destabilizing."

As part of its campaign, the U.S. has re-imposed sanctions on exports of Iranian crude oil, which have tanked the Iranian economy.