The presidents of Russia and France have spoken and vowed to preserve and implement in full the Iranian nuclear deal, Russian state media reported on Monday.
A phone conversation between Vladimir Putin and Emmanuel Macron was initiated by the French, according to the Russian state-owned TASS news service, with the leaders calling “for preserving the plan and its full implementation.”
Last week, Mr. Macron and German Chancellor Angela Merkel visited Washington in separated bids to persuade U.S. President Trump from pulling out of the 2015 deal, which eased economic sanctions on Iran in exchange for guarantees that Tehran would abandon its nuclear weapon’s program.
Mr. Trump is deeply opposed to the seven-nation agreement, having called it “insane” and questioning Tehran’s compliance. He has until May 12 to decide whether to continue suspending sanctions on Iran, as part of a periodic review.
On Sunday, Mr. Macron also spoke with Iranian President Hassan Rouhani by phone, agreeing to work together to preserve the deal, the French president’s office said in a statement.
In a conversation lasting more than an hour, Mr. Macron proposed that the discussions be broadened to cover “three additional, indispensable subjects,” his office said, citing Tehran’s ballistic missile programs, its nuclear activities beyond 2025 and “the main regional crises” in the Middle East.
During the call, Mr. Rouhani said the existing deal is non-negotiable, according to the BBC and the Iranian president’s official website. He added that Iran “will not accept any restrictions beyond its commitments” to comply with international rules after 2025 (the deal’s expiration date).
Meanwhile on Sunday, British Prime Minister Theresa May’s office announced that the leaders of Britain, France and Germany have agreed the Iran nuclear deal is the best way of stopping Tehran from gaining nuclear weapons. But they also agreed that some of the concerns Mr. Trump has raised must be addressed.
Mrs. May’s office said she spoke by phone with Mr. Macron and Ms. Merkel — and they all agreed the deal may need to expand to cover more contentious issues and “to work with the U.S. on how to tackle the range of challenges that Iran poses — including those issues that a new deal might cover.”
In the phone call between Mr. Macron and Mr. Putin, the French leader addressed his visit last week to Washington, TASS reported.
Last week upon leaving the U.S., Mr. Macron said, “My view is that [Trump] will get rid of this deal on his own, for domestic reasons.”
• Dan Boylan can be reached at dboylan@washingtontimes.com.
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