TEHRAN (Pakistan Point News / Sputnik - 25th September, 2019) Iranian President Hassan Rouhani discussed the Joint Comprehensive Plan of Action and recent developments in the middle East during talks with German Chancellor Angela Merkel on the sidelines of the UN General Assembly on Tuesday, the Iranian government said.
"Iranian President @HassanRouhani and #German Chancellor Angela Merkel met for the first time at the #UN headquarters and conferred on reinforcing mutual cooperation, preserving #JCPOA as well as defusing #regional tensions," the Iranian government wrote on Twitter.
The talks came in the wake of the recent attack on major Saudi oil facilities, something which the United States and Saudi Arabia have blamed on Iran. Though Tehran has denied having any role in the incident, the leaders of Germany, France and the United Kingdom issued a statement earlier on Tuesday claiming that "Iran bears responsibility for this attack," and that "there is no other plausible explanation."
The situation in the region started worsening after the United States walked out of the Iran nuclear deal in May 2018 and reinstated harsh sanctions on the Islamic republic. Exactly one year after the US move, Tehran announced that it would be gradually reducing its nuclear obligations every 60 days until EU signatories to the accord ensured Iran's interests amid US sanctions.
Earlier in September, Tehran embarked on the third stage of its rollback plan.
