Exclusive-European ministers to hold nuclear talks with Iran on Friday in Geneva, source says

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By Andreas Rinke and Alexander Ratz

BERLIN (Reuters) -The foreign ministers of Germany, France and Britain plan to hold nuclear talks with their Iranian counterpart on Friday in Geneva, a German diplomatic source told Reuters.

The ministers will first meet with the European Union’s top diplomat, Kaja Kallas, at Germany’s permanent mission in Geneva before holding a joint meeting with the Iranian foreign minister, the source said.

The European initiative comes amid fears of a spiralling conflict in the Middle East after Israel launched wide-ranging military strikes on its arch-enemy Iran last week and Iran sent waves of missiles at Israeli targets in response.

President Donald Trump has declined to say whether the United States will join its ally Israel’s military campaign, fuelling concerns that the crisis could intensify.

The aim of the talks between Iran and the Europeans, which the German source said are taking place in coordination with the United States, is to persuade the Iranian side to firmly guarantee that it will use its nuclear programme solely for civilian purposes.

According to the source, the talks are to be followed by a structured dialogue at the expert level.

Israel has said its goal is to eliminate Tehran’s ability to develop a nuclear weapon. Iran denies that its nuclear programme is for military purposes.

German Chancellor Friedrich Merz has spoken out in support of Israel’s attack and angered Tehran this week by saying the Iranians should de-escalate or face the threat of even greater destruction.

Meanwhile, German Foreign Minister Johann Wadephul on Wednesday appealed to Iran’s leaders to work towards a solution that would involve assurances over its nuclear programme, telling them: “It’s never too late to come to the negotiating table”.

(Writing by Rachel More, Editing by Marguerita Choy and Daniel Wallis)