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UK, France, Germany Vow to Continue Nuke Talks with Iran
FILE PHOTO: The atomic symbol and the Iranian flag are seen in this illustration, July 21, 2022. REUTERS/Dado Ruvic/Illustration/File Photo
JNS.org – Britain, France and Germany have agreed to continue nuclear negotiations with Tehran following a meeting on Friday in Geneva and amid threats by U.S. President-elect Donald Trump to reinstitute a “maximum pressure” campaign on the Islamic Republic once he assumes office in January.
Iran’s Deputy Foreign Minister and senior nuclear negotiator Majid Takht-Ravanchi met with top diplomats from the European nations, known collectively as the E3.
The talks came after the European countries joined the United States to have Iran censured by the U.N. atomic watchdog for its lack of cooperation.
The resolution by the International Atomic Energy Agency’s 35-nation Board of Governors notes an “essential and urgent” need for Iran to provide “technically credible explanations” for the uranium traces at undeclared facilities. It also urges the IAEA to compile “a comprehensive and updated assessment on the possible presence or use of undeclared nuclear material in connection with past and present outstanding issues regarding Iran’s nuclear program.”
According to a November report by the International Atomic Energy Agency, Tehran had 182.3 kilograms (401.9 pounds) of uranium enriched up to 60%, an increase of 17.6 kilograms (38.8 pounds) since its last report in August. This level of enrichment is a technical step short of 90% enrichment, considered weapons grade.
Iran condemned the censure as “politically motivated” and announced the launch of “new advanced centrifuges” to produce additional enriched uranium.
Last week, Britain’s foreign intelligence chief said that Tehran’s nuclear ambitions posed a major global threat. “Iran’s allied militias across the Middle East have suffered serious blows,” said Secret Intelligence Service (MI6) chief Sir Richard Moore, adding, “But the regime’s nuclear ambitions continue to threaten all of us.”
Similarly, the head of France’s DGSI intelligence service warned of the risk of Iran’s nuclear breakout, noting that Paris and London were preparing for such an eventuality.
“Our services are working side by side to face what is undoubtedly one of the threats, if not to say the most critical threat, in the coming months—the possible atomic proliferation in Iran,” Nicolas Lerner said. “The intelligence will be crucial to enable our authorities to make the right decisions and define the right strategies.”
In an interview with The Guardian newspaper published on Thursday, Iranian Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi said that his country was considering altering its nuclear policy.
The threat came after an adviser to Iranian Supreme Leader Ali Khamenei said earlier this month that Tehran has the capacity to develop nuclear weapons, should it choose to do so.
“We now have the technical capabilities necessary to produce nuclear weapons,” Kamal Kharrazi told the Hezbollah-affiliated Al-Mayadeen outlet.
In May, Kharrazi told the ISNA news agency: “If the Zionist regime dares to damage Iran’s nuclear facilities, our level of deterrence will be different. We have no decision to produce a nuclear bomb, but if the existence of Iran is threatened, we will have to change our nuclear doctrine.”
In August, Iran International reported that the Islamic Republic was advancing its secret nuclear program, bringing the mullahs closer to building atomic bombs.
Three independent sources in Iran told the London-based opposition media outlet that the regime was moving forward with its nuclear weapons program “by restructuring the Organization of Defensive Innovation and Research (SPND), retaining Mohammad Eslami as the head of the Atomic Energy Organization of Iran, and resuming tests to produce nuclear bomb detonators.”
The Biden administration privately warned Tehran in June about its research and development activities, Axios reported on July 17, citing three Israeli and U.S. officials.
Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said Thursday that Jerusalem would do “everything” to stop Tehran from acquiring the bomb.
“I will do everything to prevent it from becoming a nuclear [power], I will use all the resources that can be used,” the premier said.
Earlier this month, Netanyahu told a Knesset Foreign Affairs and Defense Committee meeting that Israel would review its ability to act against Iran once the Trump administration takes over.
During his first term, Trump withdrew the U.S. from the 2015 Joint Comprehensive Plan of Action, the Obama-era accord more commonly known as the Iran nuclear deal, which he said did not sufficiently prevent a pathway to an Iranian bomb.
In October, Israeli airstrikes on Iran destroyed a secret nuclear weapons research facility in Parchin, 19 miles southeast of Tehran, according to Axios. The clandestine site held sophisticated equipment used for testing explosives needed to detonate nuclear devices.
The post UK, France, Germany Vow to Continue Nuke Talks with Iran first appeared on Algemeiner.com.
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After False Dawns, Gazans Hope Trump Will Force End to Two-Year-Old War
Palestinians walk past a residential building destroyed in previous Israeli strikes, after Hamas agreed to release hostages and accept some other terms in a US plan to end the war, in Nuseirat, central Gaza Strip October 4, 2025. Photo: REUTERS/Mahmoud Issa
Exhausted Palestinians in Gaza clung to hopes on Saturday that US President Donald Trump would keep up pressure on Israel to end a two-year-old war that has killed tens of thousands and displaced the entire population of more than two million.
Hamas’ declaration that it was ready to hand over hostages and accept some terms of Trump’s plan to end the conflict while calling for more talks on several key issues was greeted with relief in the enclave, where most homes are now in ruins.
“It’s happy news, it saves those who are still alive,” said 32-year-old Saoud Qarneyta, reacting to Hamas’ response and Trump’s intervention. “This is enough. Houses have been damaged, everything has been damaged, what is left? Nothing.”
GAZAN RESIDENT HOPES ‘WE WILL BE DONE WITH WARS’
Ismail Zayda, 40, a father of three, displaced from a suburb in northern Gaza City where Israel launched a full-scale ground operation last month, said: “We want President Trump to keep pushing for an end to the war, if this chance is lost, it means that Gaza City will be destroyed by Israel and we might not survive.
“Enough, two years of bombardment, death and starvation. Enough,” he told Reuters on a social media chat.
“God willing this will be the last war. We will hopefully be done with the wars,” said 59-year-old Ali Ahmad, speaking in one of the tented camps where most Palestinians now live.
“We urge all sides not to backtrack. Every day of delay costs lives in Gaza, it is not just time wasted, lives get wasted too,” said Tamer Al-Burai, a Gaza City businessman displaced with members of his family in central Gaza Strip.
After two previous ceasefires — one near the start of the war and another earlier this year — lasted only a few weeks, he said; “I am very optimistic this time, maybe Trump’s seeking to be remembered as a man of peace, will bring us real peace this time.”
RESIDENT WORRIES THAT NETANYAHU WILL ‘SABOTAGE’ DEAL
Some voiced hopes of returning to their homes, but the Israeli military issued a fresh warning to Gazans on Saturday to stay out of Gaza City, describing it as a “dangerous combat zone.”
Gazans have faced previous false dawns during the past two years, when Trump and others declared at several points during on-off negotiations between Hamas, Israel and Arab and US mediators that a deal was close, only for war to rage on.
“Will it happen? Can we trust Trump? Maybe we trust Trump, but will Netanyahu abide this time? He has always sabotaged everything and continued the war. I hope he ends it now,” said Aya, 31, who was displaced with her family to Deir Al-Balah in the central Gaza Strip.
She added: “Maybe there is a chance the war ends at October 7, two years after it began.”
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Mass Rally in Rome on Fourth Day of Italy’s Pro-Palestinian Protests
A Pro-Palestinian demonstrator waves a Palestinian flag during a national protest for Gaza in Rome, Italy, October 4, 2025. Photo: REUTERS/Claudia Greco
Large crowds assembled in central Rome on Saturday for the fourth straight day of protests in Italy since Israel intercepted an international flotilla trying to deliver aid to Gaza, and detained its activists.
People holding banners and Palestinian flags, chanting “Free Palestine” and other slogans, filed past the Colosseum, taking part in a march that organizers hoped would attract at least 1 million people.
“I’m here with a lot of other friends because I think it is important for us all to mobilize individually,” Francesco Galtieri, a 65-year-old musician from Rome, said. “If we don’t all mobilize, then nothing will change.”
Since Israel started blocking the flotilla late on Wednesday, protests have sprung up across Europe and in other parts of the world, but in Italy they have been a daily occurrence, in multiple cities.
On Friday, unions called a general strike in support of the flotilla, with demonstrations across the country that attracted more than 2 million, according to organizers. The interior ministry estimated attendance at around 400,000.
Italy’s right-wing government has been critical of the protests, with Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni suggesting that people would skip work for Gaza just as an excuse for a longer weekend break.
On Saturday, Meloni blamed protesters for insulting graffiti that appeared on a statue of the late Pope John Paul II outside Rome’s main train station, where Pro-Palestinian groups have been holding a protest picket.
“They say they are taking to the streets for peace, but then they insult the memory of a man who was a true defender and builder of peace. A shameful act committed by people blinded by ideology,” she said in a statement.
Israel launched its Gaza offensive after Hamas terrorists staged a cross border attack on October 7, 2023, killing some 1,200 people and taking 251 people hostage.
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Hamas Says It Agrees to Release All Israeli Hostages Under Trump Gaza Plan
Smoke rises during an Israeli military operation in Gaza City, as seen from the central Gaza Strip, October 2, 2025. Photo: REUTERS/Dawoud Abu Alkas
Hamas said on Friday it had agreed to release all Israeli hostages, alive or dead, under the terms of US President Donald Trump’s Gaza proposal, and signaled readiness to immediately enter mediated negotiations to discuss the details.