MOSCOW (Pakistan Point News / Sputnik - 01st September, 2021) �French Foreign Minister Jean-Yves Le Drian spoke by phone with his Iranian counterpart, Hossein Amirabdollahian, and stressed the urgency of reviving negotiations on the Joint Comprehensive Plan of Action (JCPOA), the French Foreign Ministry said on Wednesday.
"The minister underlined the importance and the urgency of an immediate resumption of negotiations, interrupted by Iran since June, to allow for a return to the full implementation of the 2015 Vienna nuclear agreement," a statement read.
Le Drian voiced concern over Tehran's nuclear activities, which violate the deal, and expressed the hope that dialogue between the two countries would speed up the resumption and conclusion of the nuclear negotiations and contribute to the regional stability, as stated by the ministry.
The ministers also touched upon the situation in Afghanistan, with which Iran shares a border, in terms of providing a "safe and secure departure" for all foreigners and Afghans willing to leave, the statement read.
Iran, France, Russia, the United States, China, the United Kingdom, Germany, and the European Union were signatories to the 2015 nuclear deal, under which Tehran pledged to scale back its nuclear program and cut down uranium reserves in exchange for sanctions relief. In 2018, the US under the Trump administration left the accord and reimposed sanctions on Iran, which, in turn, scaled back its own commitments under the deal.
Since April of this year, the JCPOA joint commission has held sessions in Vienna, which also hosted several informal meetings designed to prevent the agreement from collapsing after Washington's exit. The sixth round of discussions ended on June 20.
