Tillerson, Zarif in first meeting: no shoes thrown

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The US Secretary of State Rex Tillerson Wednesday said he and Iran's Foreign Minister Javad Zarif "didn't throw shoes at one another" at their first meeting, but he added that it isn't clear whether they will be able to agree on the future of the Iranian nuclear deal.

“It was a good opportunity to meet, shake hands,” Tillerson told reporters after the meeting. “There was no yelling, we didn’t throw shoes at one another… It was not an angry tone at all. It was a very, very matter of fact exchange about how we see this agreement very differently.”

US Secretary of State Rex Tillerson (L) exits after attending a meeting of the parties to the Iran nuclear deal during the 72nd United Nations General Assembly at UN headquarters in New York, US, September 20, 2017. /Reuters Photo

Tillerson and Zarif met as parties to the 2015 accord at an EU-hosted event alongside the UN General Assembly.

European ministers called the meeting to examine ways to save a deal that US President Trump is poised to denounce, but Tehran and Washington remain far apart.

EU foreign policy chief Federica Mogherini put the bravest possible face on the encounter, stressing that Iran and the great powers agree the deal is ‘delivering.’ But Tillerson said the discussion had been a political one and that even if Iran is in ‘technical’ compliance with the pact, “significant differences” remain.

“It was not a technical discussion, it was a political discussion of the political aspects,” Tillerson said. “So we had a very open and candid exchange between all of the parties to that agreement,” he added, describing the meeting as ‘useful’ but inconclusive.

Iran's Foreign Minister Mohammad Javad Zarif (C) exits after attending a meeting of the parties to the Iran nuclear deal during the 72nd United Nations General Assembly at UN headquarters in New York, US, September 20, 2017. /Reuters Photo

Tillerson also argued that the preamble to the agreement implied that it would lead to a more stable Middle East region and said Iran remains a source of instability.

“Regrettably, since the agreement was confirmed we have seen anything but a more peaceful stable region, and this is a real issue,” he told reporters. “That why we talk about Iran defaulting on these expectations, since those expectations have not been met.”

European diplomats, while sharing these concerns, are becoming exasperated by this argument – insisting the accord was designed solely to stop Iran getting the bomb.

The European chief diplomat, who chaired the meeting, argued that it would be unwise to re-open the deal at a time when the world is facing a nuclear threat from the DPRK. “We already have one potential nuclear crisis. We definitely do not need to go into another one,” she said.

There was some sympathy for the US position from France, whose President Emmanuel Macron said the deal could be expanded to ban missile tests and cut the sunset clause.

French President Emmanuel Macron raises his hand during a vote at a UN Security Council meeting on peacekeeping at the 72nd United Nations General Assembly at UN headquarters in New York, US, September 20, 2017. /Reuters Photo

But even he insisted that the core deal not be dumped and the Joint Comprehensive Plan of Action that the deal signatories implemented last year must stay in place. “We need the 2015 accord,” Macron said. “Is this accord enough? It is not, given the growing pressure that Iran is applying in the region.”

Iran has, however, ruled out renegotiating the accord. Addressing the UN Assembly a day after Trump appeared on the same podium to attack Iran, Rouhani warned the fate of the deal cannot be decided by “one or two countries.”

“It will be a great pity if this agreement were to be destroyed by rogue newcomers to the world of politics. The world will have lost a great opportunity,” he said. “By violating its international commitments, the new US administration only destroys its own credibility.”

Trump is due to report to the US Congress on October 15 on whether or not he believes that Iran is in compliance with the nuclear deal. If, as now appears increasingly likely, he decides that it is not it could open the way for renewed US sanctions and perhaps the collapse of the agreement. Trump said Wednesday he had made his decision but was not yet ready to reveal it.

Tillerson told reporters he was aware that a decision had been made, but that Trump had even refused to tell British Prime Minister Theresa May what it is.

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Source(s): AFP