France’s foreign minister warned on Wednesday, April 2nd, that a military confrontation with Iran would be “almost inevitable” if talks over Tehran’s nuclear programme failed.
“In the event of failure, a military confrontation would appear to be almost inevitable,” Jean-Noel Barrot said in parliament, adding that it would severely destabilise the region.
Earlier Wednesday, President Emmanuel Macron chaired a meeting on Iran. U.S. President Donald Trump has threatened that Iran will be bombed if it persists in developing nuclear weapons. Iran’s supreme leader, Ayatollah Ali Khamenei, has promised to hit back.
“Our confidence and our conviction remain intact,” Barrot said. “Iran must never acquire nuclear weapons.” He added: “Our priority is to reach an agreement that verifiably and durably constrains the Iranian nuclear programme.”
European governments have warned that if Iran doesn’t curb its enrichment activities by summer, they will reinstate UN sanctions lifted under the 2015 nuclear deal.
