Description: Iranian foreign officials are expected to hold nuclear negotiations with their respective counterparts from the E3 group of countries, France, Germany and the UK in Istanbul on Friday. The announcement arrives in the midst of a fifth round of negotiations between the US and Iran expected to be held this week under Omani mediation. The E3 group is a vital part of the JCPOA agreement and has the power to impose snapback sanctions on Iranian entities if all engaged parties don’t agree upon a comprehensive resolution to Iran’s disputed nuclear enrichment program. The announcement comes a day after Iran’s Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi threatened that reimposition of the snapback sanctions before the estimated deadline would have irreversible consequences on the negotiating process. Multilateral relations between the E3 and Iran have significantly depleted in the past couple of years, as Europe continued imposing sanctions over Iran’s rapid uranium enrichment and their support towards Russia in the war in Ukraine.
Impact: The engagement between Iranian and European officials was bound to happen as the nuclear talks with the US haven’t so far resulted in constructive resolution proposals. Iran is looking to expand its diplomatic maneuvering ground by introducing the E3 directly into the negotiating fold, while Europe would see this as a possibility of reengaging in global affairs and improve their influence and diplomatic outreach. Both Europe and the US despite current differences have repeatedly stated that Iran’s nuclear issue is being bilaterally coordinated and any new agreement would stipulate incorporation of previously arranged strategic approach towards resolution. The pressure ahead of the fifth round of negotiations is definitely on Iran as US President Donald Trump emphasized in his visit to Saudi Arabia. Europe’s involvement ahead of a crucial round of talks could incentivize the US to apply stronger narrative which could potentially push Iran towards making the initial concession. Iran has so far resisted the US sanctions and war threats, however, the regime would have to approach the fifth round of talks in a different way if rapid resolution is their main goal rather than drawing out as a strategic approach, which would have substantial repercussions mostly to the country’s economy and geopolitical stance.