Britain tells Iran to stop funding proxies or face Trump strikes
Iran has been told to stop funding its proxies, end its nuclear programme, and limit manufacturing ballistic missiles in exchange for a deal to halt Donald Trump's plans for military strikes.
The proposition was tabled by Britain, France and Germany at face-to-face talks with Tehran's foreign minister on Friday, after the US president set a two-week deadline for a diplomatic solution.
Emmanuel Macron, the French president, appeared to set out details of the offer ahead of the discussions in Geneva, Switzerland.
'Iran must show that it is willing to join the platform for negotiations we are putting on the table,' he told reporters on the sidelines of the Paris Air Show in Le Bourget.
'It is essential to prioritise a return to substantive negotiations, which include nuclear – to move to zero enrichment (by Iran of uranium) – ballistics, to limit Iranian capacities, and the financing of all the terrorist groups that destabilise the region,' he added.
David Lammy, the Foreign Secretary, was joined by his French and German counterparts, as well as the EU's top diplomat, for the talks with Abbas Araghchi, Iran's foreign minister, at the InterContinental hotel.
The European offer on the table would see Iran's regime protected in exchange with open access for the UN's atomic watchdog to its nuclear sites, to ensure uranium enrichment is halted.
The second and third elements would grant international oversight to the Islamic Republic's ballistic missiles programme and its funding of proxies, including Hamas and Hezbollah.
And a fourth aspect would see the release of foreign nationals held hostage in Iranian jails.
The talks lasted more than two hours, with Iranian state media claiming that a short pause in the discussions was taken for 'internal consultations' by the Europeans.
Speaking after the talks, Mr Lammy urged Iran to return to the negotiating table with the US as soon as possible.
The Foreign Secretary told reporters: 'We were clear Iran cannot have a nuclear weapon, and the e3 and Europe has been clear for many years that that cannot happen.
'We are keen to continue ongoing discussions and negotiations with Iran, and we urge Iran to continue their talks with the United States. This is a perilous moment, and it is hugely important that we don't see regional escalation of this conflict, and indeed the issues that that would cause for all of us, but also for people at home worried about cost of living at this time.'
But he, and his French, Germany and EU counterparts, dodged any questions over whether the talks with the Iranian minister had brought about any progress.
The Foreign Secretary had flown into Geneva overnight from Washington, where he had been meeting Marco Rubio, the US secretary of state, and Steve Witkoff, Mr Trump's diplomatic envoy.
'We are determined that Iran must never have a nuclear weapon,' Mr Lammy wrote online late on Thursday.
He added: 'We discussed how a deal could avoid a deepening conflict. A window now exists within the next two weeks to achieve a diplomatic solution.'
Jean-Noel Barrot, the French foreign minister, said the talks in Geneva would be used 'to make a complete diplomatic and technical offer for negotiations'.
The two-week window was granted by Mr Trump, amid reports that he had signed off on plans for US bombers to strike Iran as early as Saturday.
It also came as European officials warned their counterparts in the White House that any attack could imperil the lives of Western hostages held by Tehran and unleash a wave of terror by the Islamic regime's proxies.
As well as a scramble to broker a diplomatic solution to the mounting crisis, the reprieve triggered Iran to rush to export as much oil as possible, amid fears a wider war could result in the closure of the Strait of Hormuz.
The increase in exports by Tehran could suggest that it is preparing for an escalation in the conflict.
Ahead of the talks on Friday, Mr Araghchi told a UN meeting that Israel's attacks on its nuclear facilities had scuppered 'a very promising agreement' between Tehran and Washington.
'We were attacked in the midst of an ongoing diplomatic process,' he said.
Iran's top diplomat also claimed his country would not engage in negotiations with the US as long as Israel's bombing campaign continued.
'Americans want to negotiate and have sent messages several times, but we clearly said that as long as this aggression doesn't stop, there's no place for talk of dialogue,' he told state television.
But Daniel Meron, Israel's ambassador to the UN, slammed the decision to allow Mr Araghchi to speak to the organisation's Human Rights Council as a 'blatant betrayal of the many victims of this regime worldwide'.
As the talks progressed in Switzerland, Iran claimed it had arrested a 'European spy' on suspicion of espionage.
'He had been visiting the country as a tourist at the time of the brutal attack by the Zionist regime,' the Tasnim news agency reported, without releasing his name, age or nationality.
The Islamic regime claimed to have arrested dozens of foreigners accused of spying since its war with Israel broke out.
The use of trumped-up espionage charges is a tactic frequently deployed by Tehran to detain Westerners or dual nationals for leverage in negotiations.
Risk of 'a very high release of radioactivity'
In a sign of increased hostilities, the UK announced it would withdraw its embassy staff from Iran and arrange charter flights to evacuate British nationals from Israel.
'Due to the current security situation, we have taken the precautionary measure to temporarily withdraw our UK staff from Iran. Our embassy continues to operate remotely,' the Foreign Office said in a statement.
Mr Lammy said the evacuation flights would take off from Tel Aviv as soon as the Jewish state's airspace was reopened.
Meanwhile, at the UN Security Council in New York, Rafael Grossi, the head of its nuclear watchdog, said strikes on Iran's Bushehr plant could trigger ' a very high release of radioactivity '.
He also claimed his agency had not witnessed any damage to Fordow, Iran's underground enrichment plant, but that strikes on Natanz by Israel had been ' seriously damaging '.
Hashtags
Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles
The Independent
2 hours ago
- The Independent
Two Middle East-related protests to be held in central London on Saturday
Protesters are set to rally at two high-profile demonstrations in central London on Saturday over flaring conflicts in the Middle East, the Metropolitan Police said. A protest organised by groups under the Palestine Coalition banner will gather in Russell Square from 12pm, before marching to Whitehall via Aldwych and the Strand for an assembly outside Downing Street. Former Scottish First Minister Humza Yousaf, former Labour leader Jeremy Corbyn and musician Paloma Faith are among those set to give speeches at the assembly. Meanwhile, a static counter-protest organised by pro-Israeli group Stop The Hate will be held at the same time just north of Waterloo Bridge at the junction with the Strand. The group said it would meet at the location from 12.30pm onwards. Police have set out conditions for the first protest under the Public Order Act which demands that any person taking part in the procession must remain within Russell Square ahead of the protest and must not deviate from its specified route. Demonstrators must then stay in a specified part of Whitehall for the assembly, which must finish by 5.30pm, the force said. The Palestine Coalition is comprised of a number of different groups, including the Palestine Solidarity Campaign (PSC) and Stop The War. Stop The War said in an advertisement for the event on its website: 'Israel's attacks on Gaza and the West Bank are intensifying. Their starvation policy continues. And now Israel attacks on Iran seem intended to lead us into a full-scale war in the Middle East. 'The UK Government has at last accepted that Israel's actions in Gaza are unconscionable. Now they must act – words are not enough.' Discussions are ongoing regarding possible conditions for the Stop The Hate protest, the Met said. In a post on X, Stop The Hate said: 'Our families in Israel are under attack: standing bravely in the face of threats and ballistic missiles, whilst the people of Iran are bravely facing down their totalitarian government — now it's our turn to stand proudly in solidarity with them.' The demonstrations come after reports on Friday that the Home Secretary will ban Palestine Action after the group vandalised two aircraft at RAF Brize Norton. Yvette Cooper has decided to proscribe the group, making it a criminal offence to belong to or support Palestine Action, after footage posted online showed two people inside the RAF base, with one appearing to spray paint into an aircraft's jet engine. PSC described the move on social media as 'outrageous', while the Campaign Against Antisemitism welcomed the news, saying: 'Nobody should be surprised that those who vandalised Jewish premises with impunity have now been emboldened to sabotage RAF jets.'
BBC News
2 hours ago
- BBC News
Iran will consider diplomacy when Israeli aggression stops
Iran has said it will not resume talks over its nuclear programme while under attack, hours after Israel's defence minister warned of "prolonged" conflict against the Islamic of violence continued on Friday, as Iran fired another salvo of missiles at northern Israel, and Israel targeted dozens of sites in Iran. Israel's foreign minister, Eyal Zamir, said in a video address that his country should be ready for "ready for a prolonged campaign" and warned of "difficult days ahead."Iran's foreign minister Abbas Araghchi met with European diplomats in Geneva who urged him to revive diplomatic efforts with the US over Tehran's nuclear programme. But Araghchi said Iran was ready to consider diplomacy only once Israel's "aggression is stopped".He went on to say that Iran's nuclear programme was peaceful, and that Israel's attacks on it are a violation of international law, adding that Iran will continue to "exercise its legitimate right of self-defence"."I make it crystal clear that Iran's defence capabilities are non-negotiable," he said. Israel's ambassador to the UN accused Iran of having a "genocidal agenda" and posed an ongoing threat, adding that Israel would not stop targeting nuclear facilities until they were "dismantled". Trump: Iran doesn't want to speak to Europe Meanwhile, US President Donald Trump said on Friday that Iran had a "maximum" of two weeks to avoid possible US air strikes, suggesting that he could take a decision before the 14-day deadline he set on Thursday."I'm giving them a period of time, and I would say two weeks would be the maximum," Trump told added that the aim was to "see whether or not people come to their senses."The US president was also dismissive of the talks between Araghchi and foreign ministers from Britain, France, Germany and the EU."Iran doesn't want to speak to Europe. They want to speak to us. Europe is not going to be able to help in this," Trump said. UK Foreign Minister David Lammy said that the US had provided "a short window of time" to resolve the crisis in the Middle East, which he said was "perilous and deadly serious". French Foreign Minister Jean-Noel Barrot said "we invited the Iranian minister to consider negotiations with all sides, including the United States, without awaiting the cessation of strikes, which we also hope for".Barrot added that "can be no definitive solution through military means to the Iran nuclear problem" and warned that it was "dangerous to want to impose a regime change" in Iran. As the Geneva talks took place, the exchange of fire between Israel and Iran was hit by a new round of Iranian strikes with the Israeli military reporting an attack of 20 missiles targeting Israeli woman died of a heart attack, bringing the Israeli total since the conflict began to Israel Defense Forces said it attacked ballistic missile storage and launch sites in western the last week, Israeli air strikes have destroyed Iranian military facilities and weapons, and killed senior military commanders and nuclear health ministry said on Sunday that at least 224 people had been killed, but a human rights group put the unofficial death toll at 639 on has launched hundreds of ballistic missiles at Israel in response to the air strikes.
Telegraph
2 hours ago
- Telegraph
‘She's wrong': Trump throws Tulsi Gabbard under the bus on Iran
Donald Trump has said that Tulsi Gabbard and the US intelligence community is 'wrong' about Iran's nuclear capabilities. The US president doubled down on his claim that his own government officials are mistaken about how close Iran is to building a nuclear bomb when challenged by a reporter on Friday. 'What intelligence do you have that Iran is building a nuclear weapon?', Mr Trump was asked outside Air Force One. 'Your intelligence community have said they have no evidence that they are at this point.' 'Well then my intelligence community is wrong,' Mr Trump responded, before asking: 'who in my intelligence community said that?' 'Your director of national intelligence Tulsi Gabbard,' the reporter replies, before the president retorts: 'She's wrong.' Mr Trump added: 'Within a matter of weeks, or certainly within a matter of months, they're going to be able to have a nuclear weapon. We can't let that happen.' In March, Ms Gabbard told Congress the intelligence community 'continues to assess that Iran is not building a nuclear weapon and Supreme Leader Khamenei has not authorised the nuclear weapons program he suspended in 2003.' She also said the US was closely monitoring Iran's nuclear program, noting that the country's 'enriched uranium stockpile is at its highest levels and is unprecedented for a state without nuclear weapons.' Its the second time Mr Trump has directly contradicted Ms Gabbard on the issue, with the US president saying on Thursday that he did not 'care what she thinks'. Speaking aboard Air Force One on his return from the G7 summit in Canada, Mr Trump told reporters: 'I think they were very close to having a weapon.' Ms Gabbard later told CNN that her comments had been taken out of context and that she was on 'the same page' as Mr Trump. General Erik Kurilla, who leads US forces in the Middle East, recently testified to Congress that Iran could produce enough nuclear material for 10 weapons in three weeks. However, he did not say how long it would take to assemble the pieces into a bomb. On Thursday, Mr Trump's press secretary said Iran could produce a nuclear bomb 'within weeks'. 'Let's be very clear, Iran has all that it needs to achieve a nuclear weapon,' she said. 'All they need is a decision from the Supreme Leader to do that, and it would take a couple of weeks to complete the production of that weapon, which would of course pose an existential threat not just to Israel, but to the United States and to the entire world.' A senior intelligence official said Mr Trump was right to be concerned because its uranium enrichment far exceeds what would be needed for domestic purposes. Another senior administration official said Iran was as close to having a nuclear weapon as it could be without having one. Both spoke on condition of anonymity to discuss sensitive issues. Mr Trump's contradiction of Ms Gabbard echoed his feuds with US spy leaders during his first term, when he viewed them as part of a 'deep state' that was undermining his agenda. Most notably, he sided with Vladimir Putin in 2018 when asked if Moscow had interfered in the 2016 election, saying Mr Putin was 'extremely strong and powerful in his denial.'
