EU calls for international deal to end Iran nuclear standoff

The European Union's top diplomat on Tuesday called for an international nuclear deal with Iran along the lines of a 2015 agreement, days after US President Donald Trump mooted military action to dismantle it.

High Representative Kaja Kallas's remarks signal an important policy statement by the bloc after Washington and Tehran jousted over whether the so-called Joint Comprehensive Plan of Action (JCPOA) from which Trump withdrew in his first term can be a basis for a renewed agreement.

"The constant expansion of Iran’s nuclear programme fully contradicts Iran’s own commitments as endorsed by the Security Council," Kallas said at a United Nations Security Council session on EU-UN cooperation.

"At the same time, a multilateral approach, like the JCPOA was, is key. There is no sustainable alternative to a diplomatic solution."

Iran denies seeking a nuclear weapon but the UN's nuclear watchdog last week pointed to a sharp rise in Tehran's stockpile of highly enriched uranium.

The United States and European Union said Iran's activities serve no credible civilian purpose and demanded it immediately desist.

Trump said on Thursday that Tehran would need to ditch a nuclear program much of the West views as a precursor to building nuclear weapons or face military force.

The hawkish US president has not specified whether the JCPOA, from which he withdrew in his first term after bashing it as too lenient, would be the basis of the talks or whether he sought any international buy-in for a new deal.

Rejecting the idea of a renewed agreement, the Revolutionary Guards' Tasnim news agency said a deal already existed in the form of the JCPOA.

Iran's ally Russia has said it is willing to mediate and Moscow's envoy to the UN nuclear watchdog said on Monday that the JCPOA remains the essential foundation for any future negotiations on Iran's nuclear program.

Kallas went on to criticize Iran's aid to Russia in its full-scale invasion of Ukraine.

"Russia has brought others – North Korea, Iran – to support its colonial battle too."

"Iran’s military support to Russia, including the delivery of ballistic missiles, is a major threat to international security," she added.